“They are going to destroy our houses”, worry the inhabitants of the bombarded regions

Sporadic bombardments, Friday, February 18 in the morning. Then, as the day progressed, the light declined and they were more intense and above all closer to the residential areas of the small town of Stanytsia Luhanska, in the Donbass region, located in eastern Ukraine. The tension is at its height on the international scene, after a resumption of violence Thursday in this region where the war has never really stopped for eight years between the pro-Russian separatists on one side, the Ukrainian army on the other . Discussions and calls for calm multiplied throughout the day.

>> Crisis in Ukraine: follow the evolution of the situation in our live

In total, around 100 ceasefire violations were recorded during the day. The streets of Stanytsia Luhanska emptied, and by nightfall only a few old people were left, dazed by the crash of shells. “For half an hour, we have been fired upon: who and from where? We are afraid, it is obvious. What else will happen to us?”wonders Olga, unable to decide whether to flee or stay at home. She evokes the bombardments of the day which “didn’t stop”. “They are going to destroy our houses. Have you seen the houses in ruins? We have signed the Minsk agreements. They must be implemented now. You Europeans must demand from our government and from our president, Volodymyr Zelensky, that he ratifies the Minsk agreements so that we can live in peace.”

Shortly before 4 p.m., the crossing point to the self-declared breakaway republic of Lugansk was closed. The inhabitants who did not want to leave went back to their homes and the few vehicles still in circulation went north, further from the front line. “At any time, a shell can fall on the roof of the car and everything can explode”, worries Vitali at the wheel of his utility. He cut his coffee delivery short. “We hear them regularly and yesterday they fired on a nursery school. It’s chaos, it’s anarchy.

“I can’t continue working. It’s very dangerous. It’s a matter of life and death. I have my family waiting for me at home.”

Vitali, resident of Sanytsia Luhanska

at franceinfo

To leave Stanytsia Louhanska, iYou have to go north, then go through the Chtchastia checkpoint. It was there that at midday, according to the Ukrainian authorities, a shell fell near a convoy of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.