DONETSK, January 1. /TASS/. An upsurge in shellings of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) during the New Year holidays was expected, the DPR’s acting head Denis Pushilin told TASS on Sunday.

"We had expected that the Ukrainian regime would intensify bombardments on New Year's Eve. Since 2014 it has been their cynical practice to terrorize civilians on the days of important holidays," he said.

Earlier in the day the Ukrainian artillery shelled Donetsk, Yasinovataya, Makeyevka, Gorlovka and other communities.

One civilian was reported dead and five others injured as a result of these attacks. In Donetsk, the areas of an indoor bazaar and the Donbass Arena stadium came under fire. The city’s mayor, Alexey Kulemzin also reported destruction in the areas of Studgorodok, Pushkin Boulevard and Artyom, Postyshev and Gorky streets. A direct hit was recorded on the Republican Art Museum, Donetsk Technical School of Industrial Automation and on other civilian institutions. Kulemzin stressed that on New Year's Night the Ukrainian forces shelled Donetsk with special frenzy. In Makeyevka, the building of the local Children's and Youth’s Creativity Center, a shop and a private household were damaged.