Sound of Ukrainian artillery, missiles wakes up Donbas locals

12-03-2022
Rudaw
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DONETSK, Eastern Ukraine - Two women were injured in Ukrainian attacks on the separatist held Donbas region over the weekend, locals told Rudaw.

The separatist-held Donbas region has come under constant missile and artillery shelling causing injuries and material damages since the war started.

The once-thriving Petrovskiy district of Donetsk, where the city's the richest used to live, now partially lies in ruins.

Those still living in the neighborhood told Rudaw that they woke up to the sound of at least a dozen missiles on Thursday, injuring two women and a child.

However, almost all of Donetsk's neighborhoods are sporadically targeted by the attacks.

Vadim, a 57 year old tradesman, has lived all his life in the Petrovskiy district.

"The children were very scared. We heard the sound of artillery. The very moment the artillery landed, everyone started to scream. We all, including my children and my wife, ran to the hallway, where we sat and avoided the windows. A very scary situation indeed. Fortunately, no one died this time. Only two women were injured,” he told Rudaw.

Vadim says they do not think they will relax unless Donbas achieves its full independence and becomes part of Russia.

"They [Ukrainian army] started chanting ‘Death to Russia’ in 2014. The
The Russian language was then banned. We have been against their chauvinism
ever since. I do not believe that sane people will come to power in
Ukraine after the war. We want to be with Russia,” he added.

Luhansk People's Republic and Donetsk People's Republic, located in the Donbas region, declared their independence from Ukraine in 2014. Ukraine drove its army directly into the region and took control over more than half of Donbas.

"I was here when the shelling started. I had come back from work. It was
very scary. These shillings have never stopped since 2014,” Nadejda a physician resident of Petrovskiy district said.

The war in Ukraine is entering its third week and at least 1.2 million Ukrainians have fled to neighboring countries including Poland, Romania, and Moldova since the war began.

According to official sources, since the beginning of the Russian assault on Ukraine, more than 165,000 people have fled to Russia from the Donbas region, of which about 40,000 are children.
 

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