Russian forces shell aid center in Donetsk Oblast, injure 4

Russian forces launched a strike against an aid center in Chasiv Yar, Donetsk Oblast, injuring four civilians, the Donetsk Oblast Prosecutor's Office reported on Aug. 18.

According to the prosecutors, Russian forces shelled the residential area of Chasiv Yar most likely using artillery. Two women aged 73 and 76 who were walking in the streets at the time were injured.

A 72-year-old man was hospitalized with shrapnel wounds. Among the victims is also a 67-year-old worker of the aid center, which serves to distribute humanitarian aid and provide other assistance to the residents, the prosecutors said.

The shelling started a fire in two apartment houses and damaged several other buildings, the Prosecutor General's Office reported.

The front-line city of Chasiv Yar is a regular target of Russian strikes. On July 23, Donetsk Oblast Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko reported that the culture center turned humanitarian aid distribution point has been shelled by Russian cluster munitions.

Escape from Kupiansk: How one cop tricked the Russians
Editor’s note: Due to security concerns, the Kyiv Independent isn’t publishing the real name or the photo of the police officer at the center of this story. He is identified in the story as Oleksandr. KUPIANSK, Kharkiv Oblast – Kupiansk police officer Oleksandr doesn’t like remembering the time