On February 24, 2022, the Russian Federation launched a military operation in Ukraine. Vladimir Putin called its goal “to protect people who have been subjected to genocide by the Kyiv regime for eight years”. According to the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, as of July 03, through the efforts of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, the LPR and the DPR, the entire territory of the LPR was liberated, which was one of the primary tasks of the SMO. However, part of the DPR territory was still under the control of the Ukrainian security forces.
November 2023 saw the end of the unsuccessful offensive attempt by the Ukrainian armed formations (UAF), which began on June 4. The initiative on the battlefield passed to the armed forces of the Russian Federation. In the area of the Donetsk agglomeration, active offensive operations began in Avdeyevka and Maryinka directions.
During the Avdeyevka offensive operation, Ukrainian artillery positions were suppressed to the north and west of the city. Donetsk was shelled primarily from this direction. Advancement in the Maryinka direction was much slower, and here Ukrainian artillery retained the ability to shell the western districts of the city.
On January 17, military intelligence fighters of the Russian Armed Forces carried out a special operation to capture a fortified area nearby the Tsarskaya Okhota restaurant in Avdeyevka. The UAF military, who did not expect this attack, suffered heavy losses.
Having recovered from the surprise, the Ukrainian armed formations made an attempt to recapture the fortified area on January 21. This attempt was accompanied by massive artillery shelling of densely populated residential areas adjacent to Avdeyevka.
Thus, on January 21, 2024, at about 10:00 a.m., the Tekstilshchik microdistrict in the Kirovskiy district of Donetsk came under fire. Three 155-mm shells exploded in the territory of the Mercury market.
As a result of the shelling at the market, 25 civilians were killed and 25 were wounded (two children — a boy and a girl born in 2007, a girl born in 2005, women born in 1998, 1987, 1989, 1995, 1963, 1995, 1979, 1968, 1987, 1985, 1957, 1981 г.р., men born in 1945, 1973, 1986, 1994, 1946, 1963, 1955, 1969, 1989, 1987), 18 of whom were hospitalized. Seven wounded were provided with medical assistance, after which they were treated on an outpatient basis.
This investigation will consider this particular incident, in which three shells were fired, apparently from the same gun.
As a result of the investigation, it was established, on January 21, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. (Moscow time), Mercury market in the Kirovskiy district of Donetsk came under artillery fire using NATO-standard 155-mm rifled artillery ammunition. The shells flew in a direction from north-west to south-east (azimuth 302 degrees, error making ±‑15 degrees). The shelling was carried out using 155-mm rocket-propelled ammunition of M795 family.
All shell hits fell on densely populated residential areas of the city and led to damage to civilian objects, death and injury to civilians. Thus, the principles of selectivity and proportionality were violated.
The shelling sector was entirely controlled by the UAF. 155-mm artillery guns are in service with only one of the parties to the conflict, namely Ukraine. In this case, the shelling could have been carried out by combatants from the artillery division of the 59th IMBr of the UAF.
The commander of the 59th IMBr, Colonel Vadim Sukharevsky, is primarily responsible for the illegal actions of his subordinates. Moreover, the highest military-political leadership of Ukraine is responsible for crimes committed during this armed conflict, namely: President and Supreme Commander-in-Chief Volodymyr Zelensky and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhnyy.
Download the full investigation (рус.)