Shelling leaves city in Luhansk oblast without power and utilities
The city of Schastia in the government-controlled part of Luhansk Oblast has been left without power, water, or heating, after being shelled by Russian proxy forces, according to a message from the regional state administration on Feb. 21.
An artillery barrage by Russian proxies damaged the local power plant and some pipes near a pumping station, and has set the plant’s fuel stockpile ablaze.
Shelling in the area is continuing, making it impossible to immediately assess and repair damage to the infrastructure, officials said.
By the afternoon of Feb. 21, Russian proxy forces in the Donbas has broken the tenuous ceasefire, established by the Minsk Agreement peace process and recently recommitted to during a Normandy Four advisor-level summit, on 21 occasions that day. As a result, one Ukrainian soldier has been wounded, according to the Joint Forces Operation spokesperson Pavlo Kovalchuk.
Ukraine maintains that the Joint Forces Operation is committed to observing the ceasefire-related provisions of the Minsk Agreement, as well as to international humanitarian law.
Russian proxies have similarly ramped up the frequency of their shelling of Ukrainian army positions. According to Joint Forces Operation’s data, before the recent flare-up in shelling there were between two to five daily incidents this year. In contrast, on Feb. 17 enemy forces fired upon Ukrainian troops 60 times. On Feb. 19, Moscow-controlled forces opened fire on Ukraine’s Armed Forces 136 times, killing two Ukrainian soldiers.
Rhetoric from the Russian proxies forces has also escalated in recent days, with claims of an “imminent Ukrainian offensive” being spread throughout Russian media.
No evidence exists that Ukraine is planning such an offensive.
The self-declared authorities in occupied Donbas have announced the relocation of civilians from occupied territory to Russia, as well as the mandatory conscription of all males aged 18 to 55.
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