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Six Ukrainian military troops were killed by separatist forces near the city Krematorsk in eastern Ukraine, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said on Tuesday. Eight more soldiers were wounded in the separatist “ambush” in the outskirts village of Oktyabrske near the city Krematorsk.
The statement, released on the Defense ministry’s website, said that the attack was “cynical and dangerous”, and had occurred at 1:00 p.m. local time when a Ukrainian army convoy, full of soldiers, was ambushed by a 30-man group the ministry referred to as “terrorists”. The attackers were hidden in bushes along a river bank, and used grenade launchers and automatic weapons.
According to the statement, the first shot was fired by the attackers, when a grenade launcher was used to waste a convoy, targeting the engine of the vehicle. Two soldiers were killed and three more were injured in the initial attack. “In all, as a result of the prolonged fighting, 6 members of the armed forces were killed. Eight soldiers were wounded, one of them seriously”, the ministry said. Since the attack, all the casualties have been evacuated.
The attack was the most serious loss of life for Ukrainian forces against separatists. Krematorsk is in Donetsk, which along with neighboring region Luhansk on Sunday declared its independence and sought an alliance with Russia after it passed a referendum for self-rule, declared illegal by Ukraine, the EU and the US.
On Monday, pro-Russian separatists, who had declared Donetsk’s independence from Ukraine, said that all Ukrainian military troops should leave the region or else would be considered as occupying forces. Their leader, Denis Pushilin, had called on Russia to “absorb” the Donetsk region.
According to sources, 96% voted in favor of self-rule in the region of Luhansk; 89% voted in favor of self-rule in Donetsk in the referendum. Armed rebels still remain in control of several government buildings in eastern Ukraine. The Ukrainian government fears an outcome similar to the annexation of Crimea in Luhansk, Donetsk and other parts of the country.