News and press releases

The SMM recorded a similar number of ceasefire violations as in the previous reporting period in both Donetsk and Luhansk regions, but fewer explosions than during the previous reporting period in each of them. The SMM continued to monitor the disengagement areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske, and faced restrictions of its freedom of movement in all three areas.

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region compared with the evening of 27 and 28 November. In Luhansk region the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations compared with the evening of 27 and 28 November, with the majority having been recorded in areas along the contact line in the western part of the region. The SMM continued to monitor the disengagement areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske, and faced restrictions of its freedom of movement in all three areas.*

The SMM recorded a similar number of ceasefire violations in Donetsk region as in the previous reporting period, with the majority concentrated in the Avdiivka-Yasynuvata-Donetsk airport area and areas north-east and east of Mariupol. In Luhansk region, the SMM did not record ceasefire violations. The SMM continued to monitor the disengagement areas in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske, and faced restrictions of its freedom of movement in all three areas, including jamming of its unmanned aerial vehicle.* The Mission monitored a border area in an area under government control in Luhansk region and one in Odessa. The SMM observed long queues at the entry-exit checkpoints near Stanytsia Luhanska during the morning hours.

Twenty-two representatives of the Ukrainian Ministry for Social Policy participated in a workshop on mainstreaming gender into communication organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights in Kyiv on 25 November 2016.

More than 30 human rights defenders took part in a workshop on human rights monitoring for civil society in Ukraine concluding a series of similar training and capacity building events carried out in the country since 2015 by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). The workshop took place in Chernihiv from 22 to 24 November 2016.

The SMM recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region compared with the previous reporting period. The Mission observed damage caused by shelling in government-controlled Vynohradne. It continued to monitor the disengagement process in Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske and was restricted in its movement in the three areas.* The SMM monitored the withdrawal of weapons. The Mission observed military presence in areas frequented by civilians. The SMM monitored gatherings outside courts in Kyiv and Odessa.

In Donetsk region, the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations compared with the previous reporting period, with most of the violations recorded around Debaltseve and in the Avdiivka-Yasynuvata-Donetsk airport area. In Luhansk region the SMM recorded more ceasefire violations but fewer explosions compared with the previous day. The SMM followed up on reports of shelling and damage to civilian infrastructure on the eastern outskirts of Mariupol, in Pikuzy, in Troitske, and damage to a school in Stanytsia Luhanska.