"Very difficult work, given the scale of hostilities": Pushilin announced the start of demining in Artyomovsk

Demining of the territory began in Artyomovsk. This was announced on the air of the Russia 24 TV channel by the acting head of the DPR, Denis Pushilin.

"Now the forces of the guys who liberated Artyomovsk are undergoing preliminary demining. It is important for us to carry out complete demining. This is a very painstaking and complex work, given the scale of hostilities that took place there. After that, it will be possible to talk about the work of specialists in assessing the condition of all structures, "RIA Novosti quoted him as saying.

Pushilin also said that the entire territory of the city, where civilians can still be located, will be checked, after which a headquarters will be deployed to assist the liberated territories.

At the same time, according to him, the evacuation of civilians from Artyomovsk takes place on an ongoing basis (116 people were transported to Shakhtersk over the weekend alone).

On the night of May 21, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that as a result of the offensive actions of the Wagner assault detachments, with the support of artillery and aviation of the Southern Group of Forces, the liberation of Artyomovsk was completed. Vladimir Putin stressed that all those who distinguished themselves during this operation will be presented with state awards.

Shelling of Donbass

Over the past day in the Donetsk People's Republic, five people were injured during shelling by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This was reported in the representative office of the DPR in the JCCC.

"Over the past day, five civilians received injuries of varying severity in the Petrovsky, Kievsky districts of Donetsk and in Yasinovataya," the report says.

In total, 49 attacks by Ukrainian troops were recorded in the DPR over the past day, which used 177 units of ammunition from 155, 152-mm artillery and an attack UAV. Six settlements came under fire from the Armed Forces of Ukraine: Gorlovka, Yasinovataya, Donetsk, Makiivka, Aleksandrovka, Yelenovka.

"Ten residential buildings were damaged in the Kiev, Kuibyshevsky, Petrovsky districts of Donetsk, in the Chervonogvardeysky district of Makeyevka," the DPR representative office in the JCCC said.

Along with this, the LPR representative office in the JCCC reported that over the past week, three attacks by the Armed Forces of Ukraine were recorded in the republic. Ukrainian troops used Storm Shadow cruise missiles (one missile), HIMARS MLRS (one missile), 155-mm artillery pieces (one shell) to strike Luhansk, Lysychansk and Kalynove-Borshchevate.

"The victims of the aggression of the AFU during the above period were 20 civilians, of whom five people were killed and 15 were injured. 36 houses and three civilian infrastructure facilities were destroyed and damaged," the report says.

"Vostok"

In the Yuzhno-Donetsk direction, an attempt to rotate the personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in positions south of Vodiane was thwarted, said the head of the group's press center, Alexander Gordeev.

"Artillery fire destroyed the pickup truck and manpower of the enemy," he added.

During the counter-battery fight, two Msta-B howitzers and a mortar crew were destroyed. The stronghold of the Armed Forces of Ukraine south of Vuhledar was also hit.

In the Zaporizhzhia direction, the supply of ammunition and materiel to the forward positions of the 102nd Territorial Defense Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Poltavka area was disrupted. Artillery fire destroyed a truck, a pickup truck and manpower.

Two trucks with ammunition and manpower were also destroyed in the area of Malaya Tokmachka.

"According to the results of aerial reconnaissance, artillery fire destroyed an ammunition depot in the Stepnogorsk area, temporary deployment points of militants in Poltavka and Novodanilovka, an American-made M777 howitzer in the Zatishye area," Gordeev stressed.

• Briefing by the head of the press center of the Vostok group Alexander Gordeev

"South"

The strikes of the missile unit of the Southern Group of Forces destroyed the ammunition depots of the 24th Mechanized Brigade and the 54th Mechanized Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said Vadim Astafyev, head of the press center of the South group.

In the area of the settlement of Novgorodskoye, artillery units launched a fire raid on the temporary deployment point of the national battalion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine "Right Sector" *.

"During the counter-battery fight, two enemy 120-mm mortars were destroyed in the area of the settlements of Bogdanovka and Severnoye, Krab self-propelled guns, an M-128 anti-tank gun in the area of the village of Chervonoye, as well as two tanks," he added.

An aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicle was also shot down in the area of the settlement of Opytne.

At the same time, units of radiation-chemical and biological protection defeated the Solntsepyok heavy flamethrower systems in the area of concentration of enemy manpower and the platoon stronghold of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

"Center"

The head of the press center of the Center group, Oleksandr Savchuk, said that the artillery units of the group inflicted fire damage on the areas of concentration of manpower, firepower, as well as artillery positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Krasnoliman direction.

Also, the calculation of the heavy flamethrower system "Solntsepyok" inflicted fire damage on the positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the area of the settlement of Chervonaya Dibrova.

At the same time, in the Nevsky and Torsky areas, the movement of personnel of the 66th mechanized brigade, assault detachments of the 25th Airborne Brigade and the 95th Airborne Assault Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on equipment was revealed.

"As a result of the fire impact of the artillery units of the Center group, the enemy suffered significant losses in personnel and equipment," Savchuk stressed.

"The West"

The head of the press center of the Zapad group, Sergei Zybinsky, said that the crews of Su-34 fighter-bombers attacked the concentration of personnel, weapons and military equipment of the 14th separate mechanized brigade and territorial defense units.

In addition, air defense and electronic warfare systems eliminated three reconnaissance drones of aircraft and quadcopter types.

"During the fighting in the Kupyansk direction, the calculations of high-power self-propelled mortars 2S4 Tulip, in cooperation with tank crews and calculations of anti-tank missile systems in the defense zone of the 11th Army Corps, destroyed five enemy observation posts," he stressed.

* "Right Sector" is a Ukrainian association of radical nationalist organizations, recognized as extremist and banned on the territory of Russia (decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of 17.11.2014).