DONETSK, July 22 (RIA Novosti) – The Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) militia have secured the Donetsk Airport and stopped Ukrainian Army’s attack on the city, representatives of the self-proclaimed state said Tuesday.
“Donetsk Airport was secured by DPR self-defense forces. [Ukrainian Army’s] attempts to seize it was thwarted. The enemy’s armed units suffered numerous losses during the fight,” the DPR wrote on its official Twitter page.
The militia also stopped pro-Kiev forces' offensive near Donetsk, according to the DNR.
"Self-defense forces managed to advance further on several locations," the self-proclaimed republic said.
On Monday, the Ukrainian military and independence supporters agreed on a ceasefire within a 40-kilometer (25-mile) zone around the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 crash site in Donetsk Region, to provide access to the area for the international investigators. Despite this, the assault on the city of Donetsk, which is situated some 70 kilometers from the scene, continued.
Later in the day, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution demanding that those responsible for this incident be held to account and all military activities be immediately ceased near the crash site to allow for security and safety of the international probe.
On Tuesday, the Ukrainian Air Forces also struck the city of Shakhtarsk located 30 kilometers from the crash site.
The Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur crashed on July 17 in eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board.
