Dozen Civilians Killed, 93 Injured In Donbas From May 16 To August 15 - UN Mission

The UN Human Rights Mission to Ukraine registered 12 civilian deaths and 93 injuries in Donbas from May 16 to August 15, Fiona Frazer, the head of the mission, said on Wednesday.

KIEV/LUHANSK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th September, 2018) The UN Human Rights Mission to Ukraine registered 12 civilian deaths and 93 injuries in Donbas from May 16 to August 15, Fiona Frazer, the head of the mission, said on Wednesday.

"From May 16 to August 15, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission documented 105 civilian casualties � 12 deaths and 93 injuries. This is a 30 percent increase from the last reporting period. If we compare the date to the same period of 2017, this is a 37 percent decrease," Frazer said at a briefing.

Meanwhile, Alexander Hug, the principal deputy chief monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (OSCE SMM), said that 182 civilians had become victims since the beginning of 2018.

Hug specified that from January 1 to September 17, the mission registered 34 deaths and 148 injuries.

Of them, 62 people were killed or injured due to blasts of previously unexploded munition.

In 2014, the Ukrainian army started an offensive against Donbas residents who refused to recognize the newly-formed government in Kiev. The conflict between the Donetsk and the Luhansk People's Republic (DPR and LPR) on one side, and Kiev's forces on the other has claimed over 10,000 lives, according to UN figures, and is still ongoing.

Efforts to stabilize the situation in eastern Ukraine have been made by the Normandy Four group comprising Russia, Ukraine, France, and Germany.

In particular, the Normandy Four brokered the Minsk peace accords, which were signed by the sides to the conflict in a bid to end hostilities. However, the warring parties have failed to observe the ceasefire, so the unrest in Donbas continues.