Mysterious White Aid Trucks Return as Ukraine Ceasefire Bends
Heavy shelling and casualties were reported on Monday as the fragile 10-day ceasefire between Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists continues to buckle.
According to the AP, six people were killed in fighting and another 15 people were injured. This, the most violent day since the September 5 ceasefire went into effect, followed an eventful weekend in which the Ukrainian government said its forces had repelled an attack on the government-held airport in rebel-controlled Donetsk.
Observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe say they were 200 meters (650 feet) away from four shells bursting Sunday in Donetsk. The team saw one woman lying on the ground, and said a rebel fighter on the scene told them four people had been killed that day.
The government has not confirmed the number of casualties.
The weekend also featured the return of the mysterious white aid trucks from Russia, which were said to have crossed into Ukraine without any notification or approval from Kiev.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's observer mission to the Russian-Ukrainian border said Saturday that 220 trucks crossed into Ukraine, none of which were inspected by the Ukrainian side or accompanied by the ICRC.
Late last month, a convoy of Russian aid trucks crossed the border, the instigating salvo of claims of a Russian invasion of the Ukrainian mainland. This time, the Ukrainian government said nothing of the incursion although Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk did say that his country is still in a "state of war" and accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of wanting to bring the Soviet Union back.
He cannot cope with the idea that Ukraine would be a part of a big EU family. He wants to restore the Soviet Union."
The news wasn't entirely bad:
Pro-Russian rebels honor ceasefire deal with release of 73 Ukrainian troops: http://t.co/m72f3M0PEm
— CNN International (@cnni) September 15, 2014
Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials claimed that NATO countries have started to provide arms for Ukraine's fight against the pro-Russian separatists.
This article was originally published at http://www.thewire.com/global/2014/09/mysterious-white-aid-trucks-return-as-ukraine-ceasefire-bends/380184/
Read more from The Wire
• Al-Qaida Affiliate Releases Video of Abducted Lebanese Soldiers
• Kerry: Countries Are Offering Ground Troops in Fight Against ISIS
