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Slain Donetsk head Zakharchenko to be buried on September 2

The funeral ceremony will be held in the Donetsk Opera and Ballet Theatre

DONETSK, August 31. /TAsS/. DPR head Alexander Zakharchenko, who was killed in a blast in downtown Donetsk earlier on Friday, will be buried on September 2, the Donetsk People’s Republic interim head, Dmitry Trapeznikov, said.

"The funeral and memorial service are scheduled for September 2," he said.

The funeral ceremony will be held in the Donetsk Opera and Ballet Theatre.

A three-day period of mourning was declared in the republic on Sepbember 1-3, the Donetsk News Agency reported.

"The DPR Council of ministers resolved to declare a period of mourning for the republic’s slain head, Alexander Vladimirovich Zakharchenko. The mourning period will take place on September 1, 2, 3," the agency said.

The start of the new academic year has been postponed until September 4, the agency quoted a statement by the DPR education ministry as saying.

Alexander Zakharchenko, who had been Prime Minister of the DPR since 2014, died in an explosion in downtown Donetsk on Friday. He was 42 years old. The blast left two people dead and nine injured, including DPR minister of taxes and duties, Alexander Timofeyev, and the head of a local youth organization, Natalya Volkova. DPR Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Trapeznikov, who was appointed acting head of the republic, said law enforcement agencies have already detained several suspects in the blast, who confirmed the Kiev government’s involvement. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) earlier denied any role in the blast.

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