Ukrainian soldiers on Friday, June 10, continued patrols in the country’s eastern Donbas region.
Donetsk and Luhansk both parts of Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region bordering Russia were the scene of a Russian-backed insurgency starting in 2014 when Russia illegally annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.
On the eve of Russia starting the Ukraine war this Feb. 24, President Vladimir Putin recognized the “independence” of Donetsk and Luhansk.
As with Crimea, all of Donbas is still internationally recognized as Ukrainian territory, and the country’s armed forces continue to fight for it.
According to the latest UN estimates, at least 4,253 civilians have been killed and 5,141 injured in Ukraine since Russia began the war began on Feb. 24, with the true toll believed to be much higher.
More than 6.98 million people have fled to other countries, while around 7.7 million have been internally displaced.
-AA