KYIV. Feb 17 (Interfax) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has denounced the shelling of a kindergarten in Stanytsia Luhanska and insisted on the importance for foreign diplomats and Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) employees to stay in Ukraine amid the growing tensions.
"The shelling of a kindergarten in Stanytsia Luhanska by pro-Russian forces is a big provocation. It's important that diplomats and the OSCE remain in Ukraine, their monitoring activities are an additional deterrent. We need an effective mechanism for recording all ceasefire violations," Zelensky wrote on Twitter on Thursday.
Ukraine said earlier that a kindergarten in Stanytsia Luhanska in the Luhansk region came under fire on Thursday morning, injuring two women and one man. There were a total of 20 children and 18 employees in the kindergarten at that time, the North tactical group said.
Reports that came later on Thursday indicated that the village of Vrubivka had been fired upon from the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic (LPR), with one projectile hitting a local high school, where 30 students and 14 personnel members were staying at the time. No immediate reports of possible casualties and damage were available.
At the same time, the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk republics accused Kyiv of firing upon populated areas along the entire line of contact, prompting the local militias to return fire.