On this day in 2014, fighting began in the Donbass, the so-called active phase of ATO - the armed confrontation of the Ukrainian army to Russian invaders.

As is known, in connection with the tense situation in the east of Ukraine, which was formed in mid-April 2014, in particular by the seizure by unknown armed men of several Ukrainian cities - Slavyansk, Gorlovka, Kramatorsk, Konstantinovka, Liman (then the Red Liman), Bakhmat (then - Artemovsk), Pokrovsk (then - Krasnoarmeysk) and others. , On April 14, the then Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council and Acting President of Ukraine Oleksandr Turchynov signed a decree on the implementation of the decision of the National Security and Defense Council "On Urgent Measures to Overcome the Terrorist Threat and Preserve the Territorial Integrity of Ukraine". Then, in the north of the Donetsk region, active hostilities began.

On April 15, as part of the anti-terror operation, the Ukrainian special forces without casualties liberated Kramatorsk airport from Russian separatists - an extremely important strategic target for both sides of the conflict. The city of Kramatorsk itself, like Slavyansk, was only released on July 5.

The Ukrainian army managed to stop the enemy's offensive, but also today part of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine remain under the occupation of pro-Russian bandit formations. However, the most irreparable are human victims.

According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, during the conflict in the East of Ukraine, 10,000 people died, including about 2,400 Ukrainian servicemen, about 24,000 were injured (both military and civilian). Almost two million Ukrainians were forced to leave their parents' homes and become refugees, internally displaced persons, and those who stayed in the occupied territories or on the verge of collision are daily exposed to mortal danger. Regular ceasefire agreements do not work, and the number of victims of the conflict continues to increase.

Ukrinform.