A kindergarten in Ukrainian-controlled territory took a direct hit from artillery fire by Russian-backed separatists early Thursday, leaving two teachers injured, authorities said.
The attack comes as tensions have reached a boiling point amid growing fears of a Russian offensive. Intensified fighting has erupted along the frontline and the Kremlin appeared to add fuel to predictions by U.S. officials that it might be seeking a “pretext” to send troops into the country.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called the attack “a false flag operation designed to discredit the Ukrainians.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called it a “big provocation.”The shelling came as monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe reported a surge in ceasefire violations, and a spate of shelling attacks along the frontline on Thursday alone.
“The situation on the line of contact has sharply escalated. The enemy is making attempts to unleash active hostilities,” leaders of the Donetsk People’s Republic wrote on Telegram. While much of the world reacted with relief earlier this week to Moscow’s announcement of a partial troop withdrawal from Ukraine’s borders, Western leaders have warned that the Kremlin actually appears to be sending more troops, and that all indications suggest Russia may unleash a brutal attack on Ukraine by creating a “pretext” for military action.
The expulsion came as the Russian Foreign Ministry released a copy of Moscow’s official response to security proposals by the U.S. and NATO. The document largely reiterated Moscow’s previous complaints that the U.S. had “ignored” its security concerns about the expansion of NATO and eventual entry to the alliance of Ukraine.
Echoing allegations that were rampant in Kremlin-controlled media at the peak of fighting in Ukraine’s east in 2014-2015, Russia’s Investigative Committee on Wednesday said it had opened a criminal case over the hundreds of “Russian-speaking” civilians it said had been found in the graves.
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