One killed in Donetsk in ‘massive’ Ukraine shelling, separatist officials say

One person was killed Thursday and nine more were injured in “the most massive shelling since 2014” by Kyiv’s forces in the Moscow-held eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk, separatist officials said.

“At precisely 7:00 am (0500 GMT), the center of Donetsk was hit by the most massive shelling since 2014,” the city’s Moscow-appointed mayor Alexei Kulemzin said on social media.

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He said “40 rockets were fired at civilians” and posted images of what he said were buildings and cars destroyed in the attack.

Separatist officials said on social media that one person was killed and nine more were injured.

Donetsk is the administrative center of the eastern Ukrainian region of the same name, and is one of the areas Moscow claimed to have annexed in September.

Parts of the region have been controlled by Moscow-backed separatists since 2014.

Russian proxy officials say the city center has been targeted in recent weeks and that six civilians were killed in early December.

Ukrainian authorities have said recently that the fiercest frontline battles are being waged in the Donetsk region, near the city of Bakhmut.

On Thursday, the Kyiv-appointed governor of Donetsk said two civilians were killed and four more were injured in the Ukrainian-held parts of the region the day before.

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