Battle of Ilovaisk

48.333333333333 38.416666666667Coordinates: 48 ° 20 ′ 0 ″ N , 38 ° 25 ′ 0 ″ E

Battle of Ilovaisk

Burned out car in Ilovajsk after fighting

date	August 10, 2014 to September 2, 2014
place	Ilovajsk , Donetsk Oblast , UkraineUkraine
output	Victory of the anti-government forces
consequences	Expulsion of the Ukrainian army from Ilovajsk and the surrounding area. Start of a counter-offensive by the anti-government forces.

Parties to the conflict
Ukraine Ukraine	Donetsk People's Republic Russian volunteers supported by: Russian Armed Forces (contested by Russia)
Commander
Ukraine Semen Sementchenko	Alexander Sachartschenko Mikhail Tolstych Arsen Pavlov
losses
214 dead (official), 1,000 dead (according to Semen Sementschenko) of the Ukrainian military	approx. 300 fallen separatist fighters (Ukrainian data)

The Battle of Ilovajsk was a battle between pro-Russian forces known as the People's Militia and units of the Russian armed forces on the one hand and Ukraine on the other hand, which lasted from August 10, 2014 to September 2, 2014 in Ilovakia . The rapid encirclement of the anti-government armed men, which was averted around this time, marked the turning point in the war in Ukraine since 2014 , which led to the war being halted for 6 years.

prehistory

After Slovyansk fell on July 5, 2014 , the Ukrainian army and volunteer battalions launched an offensive on Donetsk. During the advance on Donetsk, the Ukrainian army fought from the south to secure the Russian-Ukrainian border and prevent support from Russia. The militias were on the verge of defeat.

The battle

The battalion Donbass that of semen semenchenko given was adopted on 18 August 2014, large parts of the city, which was held until then by the militia, and raised the Ukrainian flag on the building of the city administration. On August 20, 2014, Ukraine announced that it had complete control of the city, which the militia denied. After a week of bitter fighting, it became known that 7,000 Ukrainian soldiers had been surrounded. During intermediate advances by the Ukrainians, Russian soldiers in Russian army vehicles had meanwhile been killed. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that he was campaigning for a "humanitarian corridor for the encircled Ukrainian soldiers". The Ukrainians used this alleged corridor to flee the city, during which they were shot at with tanks, artillery and mortars, so that according to Ukrainian information 366 unarmed Ukrainian soldiers fell. This is referred to by many Ukrainians as the "Ilovajsk massacre". According to Semen Sementchenko, more than 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers were killed in the attempt to escape.

consequences

During the Ukrainian losses in Ilovajsk, the pro-Russian militias apparently launched a counter-offensive with regular Russian troops with support from Russia, in which Ukraine fell on the defensive and the encirclement of Donetsk and Luhansk had to be broken off. Even previously uncontested areas, especially in the south of the oblast , were attacked by anti-government troops. During intermediate advances, Ukrainian units documented the Russian presence, including a Wintores sniper rifle .

From this point on, the Ukrainian authorities, which were still functioning everywhere, were replaced by new power structures.

Based on the case reports published in 2017 with the insurer of members of the Russian armed forces , the losses for the Russian soldiers fighting mainly in Ilovakia that year could be estimated at more than a hundred people.