Today, on January 27, the DPR Information Ministry hosted a press conference held by the Head of the Fair Protection Public Organization, Vitaly Galakhov, who presented the results of another investigation into the AFU shelling of cities and districts of the Republic. According to the correspondent of the Official Website of the Donetsk People’s Republic, during the press conference, Vitaly Galakhov said that the shelling of the town of Zugres on August 13, 2014, in which there were killed 12 civilians, including three children, and 30 persons were injured, was carried out with MLRS BM-30 Smerch, and not Ukrainian aviation, as was previously stated.
“We have previously submitted investigations into the shelling of the cities of the Republic. Despite the fact that this shelling is referred to as an airstrike, and eyewitnesses saw a Ukrainian military aircraft, we did not find any evidence of the use of aircraft.
We singled out four main zones damaged by cluster munitions, conditionally calling them “Stadium”, “Beach”, “School” and “Garages.” In all of them there is observed an elliptical impact zone, which is typical when cluster munitions are used.
In one of the garages, we found an unexploded damage agent of a projectile of MLRS BM-30 Smerch complex with a firing range of 20 to 70 kilometers. When reviewing satellite imagery available in the public domain, we identified the positions of the Ukrainian MLRS in the north and projectiles’ launch site three kilometers south.
From open sources it was possible to establish that in August 2014 at these positions near Kramatorsk, Artyomovsk and Debaltsevo there were located squads of the 1st Division of the 107th Jet Artillery Regiment under the command of Colonel A.M. Kelembet.
The engagement of these weapons against a peaceful town is a crime. The results of our investigation have been submitted to the International Criminal Court and the European Court of Human Rights,” Vitaly Galakhov said.
As will be recalled, 12 civilians were killed and about 30 persons were injured as a result of the shelling of the town of Zugres by the Ukrainian military on August 13, 2014. Three children were killed: Anna Kostenko (3 years old), Daniil Protasov (5 years old) and Dmitry Orlov (16 years old).