DONETSK, March 1. /TASS/. Commander of "North" tactical operational group General Dmitry Krasilnikov and many officers have been killed in the event of joint actions of the Russian Armed Forces and the People’s Militias of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, Deputy chief of the DPR’s People’s Militia Eduard Basurin said on Tuesday referring to intelligence.
"As a result of successful joint actions of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, the DPR and LPR’s People’s Militias, the headquarters of the operational tactical group "North" was destroyed today. Most of the staff officers have been killed. According to our intelligence, the commander of "North" tactical operational group General Krasilnikov is also among the casualties," the statement reads.
The situation at the line of engagement in Donbass escalated on the morning of February 17. The Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) reported the most massive bombardments by the Ukrainian military over past months, which damaged civilian infrastructure and caused civilian casualties. On February 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced recognizing the sovereignty of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics. Russia signed agreements on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with their leaders. President Putin said in a televised address on the morning of February 24 that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics he had made a decision to carry out a special military operation. The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had no plans of occupying Ukrainian territories.