6 Oct 2017 15:17

OSCE's Hug reports 5% decline in Donbas ceasefire breaches this week

KYIV. Oct 6 (Interfax) - The number of shooting incidents in the Donbas conflict zone declined slightly this week, the Principal Deputy Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM), Alexander Hug, said at a press briefing in Kyiv on Friday.

The OSCE SMM observed 2,057 ceasefire breaches this week, 5% fewer than last week, Hug said.

There was an outbreak of violence in an area between the Kyiv-held village of Krymske and the populated locality of Sokilnyky, controlled by the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic, he said.

The monitors recorded 71 instances of heavy weapons deployment in violation of the Minsk Agreements, Hug said.

For instance, the monitors' drone detected a concentration of heavy weapons and hardware, including 15 tanks, three howitzers, and three armored personnel carriers, near a DPR-held town, he said.