Cache of arms said to be found by SBU in abandoned farm house. Photo by ATO
Then two Ukrainian soldiers were wounded and Russia-backed forces attacked 18 times during the day,
Liga.net reported,
citing the ATO evening dispatch, bringing the total to 3 soldiers wounded in the last 24 hours and 40 attacks. This was relatively lighter than in the weeks before the ceasefire signed April 1 for the Easter holidays.
Over night, most of the attacks were on the Maritime line; 120-mm mortars and an armed BMP were fired on Ukrainian positions at Novogrigoryevka; 82-mortars were fired on Chermalyk and heavy machine guns were fired near Maryinka. An armed BMP, anti-tank grenaes and heavy machine guns fired on Vodyanoye; grenade-launchers and small arms were fired near Shirokino, Talakovka and Pavlopol. Near Talakovka and Vodyanoye, snipers were active.
On the Donetsk line, 82-mm mortars, grenade-launchers and heavy machine guns were used to attack Avdeyevka. Anti-tank grenades, heavy machine guns and small arms were fired on the Butovka mine. Heavy machine guns and small arms were fired on Kamenki.
On the Lugansk line, 82-mm mortars were fired near Katerinovka as well as automatic grenade-launchers. Anti-tank grenades were fired near Novoaleksandrovka.
During the day, most of the attacks were on the Donetsk line, where militants used 82-mm mortars to fire on Krymskoye. Grenade-launchers and heavy machine guns were fired on Avdeyevka and Kamenka. Heavy machine guns were also fired on Peski and Optynoe and anti-tank grenade-launchers and small arms were used on Zaytsevo.
On the Maritime line, militants attacked Krasnogorovka with 82-mm mortars, anti-tank grenades and heavy machines guns; Starognatovka was attacked with grenade-launchers. Machine guns were fired on Vodyanoye and Chermalyk. Snipers were active in Novotroitskoye.
On the Lugansk line, 82-mm mortars and automatic grenade-launchers were fired on Katerinovka.
The Ukrainian Security Service reported that two arms caches had been discovered. One was near Netaylovo on a former farm, and contained anti-tank grenades, hand grandades, trip wires, TNT, and detonators along with rounds of ammunition. The second was located between Starognatovka and Granitnoye with Kalashnikov AKS-74 rifles and grenade-launchers.
Liga.net reported, citing
Ukrinform that military leaders of the self-declared "Donetsk People's Republic" are rounding up men who work in civil service and forcing them to go to barracks where they go through a 21-day military training.
A resident of Donetsk told journalists:
"People are in shock. Of course none of these draftees will go willingly to the front, but a fact remains a fact, they decided to blacken civilians, and later use that as a chip in negotiations."
The Ukrainian military uploaded a video showing a half dozen homes damaged in Avdeyevka by shelling yesterday, April 17, as we reported.
