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Ukrainian military shell Donetsk water purification plant

The Ukrainian military over the past 24 hours eleven times opened fire on the militia’s positions in the self-proclaimed LPR, the republic’s defense authority added on Tursday

DONETSK, February 23. /TASS/. The Ukrainian military shelled on Thursday morning the Donetsk water purification plant, causing damage of filters building there, the plant’s Director General Oleg Mokryi said.

"Shelling of the area near the plant began at seven-thirty in the morning," he said. "About that time, first shells hit the plant: the roof is damaged, the filters are safe," the Donetsk News Agency quoted him.

The water purification plant continues working, he added.

"The personnel were in panic, people rushed to the bomb shelter," he continued. "We are trying to calm them down now, and to resume, if possible, regular work."

On February 18, the water purification plant was cut of electricity after shelling, and only in two days the repairing was over.

The purification station supplies water to settlements on either side of the front line, including Donetsk, Yasinovataya, Vasilyevka and Spartak controlled by the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), and Avdeyevka, Kranogorovka and Verkhnetoretskoye controlled by Kiev.

In late January, the situation along the line of contact in Donbass deteriorated, the number of shelling attacks dramatically increased. The number of destroyed buildings has been growing, there have been reports of civilian deaths.

Ukrainian military 11 times violate ceasefire

The Ukrainian military over the past 24 hours eleven times opened fire on the militia’s positions in the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), the republic’s defense authority said on Tursday.

"Kalinovo was shelled five times from 120 and 82mm mortars, weapons of IFVs, grenade launchers, and positions in Kalinovka were shelled three times from Luganskoye," LuganskInformCenter quoted the defense authority.

The Ukrainian military also shelled positions in Lozovoye and in Logvinovo, the source added.

In late January, the situation along the line of contact in Donbass deteriorated, the number of shelling attacks dramatically increased. The number of destroyed buildings has been growing, there have been reports of civilian deaths.

On February 1, members the Contact Group on settling the conflict in eastern Ukraine held a meeting in the Belarusian capital of Minsk, demanding that hostilities in Donbass be stopped, weapons and military hardware be withdrawn from the line of contact area by February 5. However, the Ukrainian military has not implemented the decisions of the Contact Group.

On February 15, the Contact Group made a decision that all weapons banned by the Minsk agreements should be withdrawn from the line of contact by February 20. Foreign ministers of the four member states of the Normandy Quartet (Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine) upheld this initiative at a meeting held on February 18.

However, on February 21, Kiev disrupted the weapons withdrawal process.