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An attack on Mariupol was launched on 24 January 2015 by pro-Russian forces associated with the Donetsk People's Republic against the strategic maritime city of Mariupol, defended by the Ukrainian government forces. Mariupol had come under attack multiple times in the past year in the course of the War in Donbass, including in May–June 2014, when the city was under the control of pro-Russian forces; and the September 2014 offensive. On 24 January 2015, the Mariupol city council and regional police said the city was subjected to indiscriminate rocket fire from the long-range Grad systems, killing at least 29 and injuring 97. The Ukrainian officials said the rebels and the Russian military were responsible. According to Ukrainian intelligence, the attack was ordered by full-time Russian military commanders.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Nato accuses Russia over worsening Ukrainian crisis )〕 The rebels denied the attack, but their leader, Alexander Zakharchenko, announced an offensive against Mariupol later that day. According to a spot report by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine, the Grad and Uragan rockets originated from the areas controlled by the pro-Russian forces. United Nations political chief Jeffrey D. Feltman said the attacks "knowingly targeted civilians," violated international humanitarian law, and could amount to war crimes. The attack on Mariupol came 11 days after the deadly Volnovakha bus attack, when a rocket strike targeted a government checkpoint in the town of Volnovakha, hitting a passenger bus which resulted in the death of 12 civilians. Government officials attributed the incident to the separatists, while the rebels denied they conducted the attack.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=BBC )〕 ==Background== Mariupol and Battle of Debaltseve were high stake arenas for pro-Russian forces and Ukrainian forces as both cities are vital transport hubs, described as a "gateway to a land-bridge" to Russian-annexed Crimea, and strategically crucial to the pro-Russian objective of opening up and linking areas under their control with a view to securing the entire Donetsk and Luhansk regions. On 22 January, pro-Russian rebels tried to attack Ukrainian positions on North-East of the city but failed. The next day, Alexander Zaharchenko vowed to fight until he reached the border of the Donetsk Oblast. Separatists reportedly began a tank offensive, and also conducted attacks near the west of the city. The village of Talakovka was reportedly shelled hard by separatists, but Ukrainian forces were "holding on". The shelling was confirmed by Andriy Lysenko, but said the separatists were still incapable of shelling the city itself because Ukrainian forces had not led them get close enough. Dmitry Tymchuk, a military blogger, reported on Facebook that a convoy of DPR tanks and APCs were advancing towards the city. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「January 2015 Mariupol rocket attack」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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