DONETSK, February 21. /TASS/. The situation in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) has become critical over the past day, residential areas are under fire from Ukraine’s Armed Forces, the leader of the Donetsk People's Republic, Denis Pushilin said on Monday.

"Dear residents of the Donetsk People's Republic! Over the past day, the situation in the republic has become critical. Ukraine is conducting massive shelling of our territory. In recent days, the artillery of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has fired more than 1,700 mines and shells at residential areas. <...> I call on all the male population - all those capable of holding weapons in their hands to come to military commissariats and stand up for their families, their children, wives, mothers and our fatherland," Pushilin said.

The head of the republic pointed out that Ukrainian security forces use heavy artillery, mortars, grenade launchers and tanks to conduct their bombardment. Donetsk, Gorlovka, Yasinovataya, Dokuchaevsk and Kominternovo are being particularly targeted. According to Pushilin, schools No. 105 and No. 56 in Donetsk were seriously damaged. As a result of the shelling, DPR servicemen were killed, and several people were injured.

The situation along the line of engagement in Donbass escalated on the morning of February 17. The Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics reported the most intensive bombardments by the Ukrainian military in recent months. On February 18, the leaders of the Lugansk and Donetsk People’s Republics (LPR and DPR), Leonid Pasechnik and Denis Pushilin, announced the evacuation of the republics’ inhabitants to Russia, citing the mounting threat of hostilities. An all-out mobilization was announced in the republics on February 19.