Ukraine rebel city of Lugansk on verge of 'humanitarian catastrophe'

The hub of some 420,000 people, the second largest rebel-controlled city after Donetsk, has seen almost daily shelling claim the lives of scores of civilians as Ukraine's military tightens its grip on pro-Russian fighters hunkering down there.

"What is happening in Lugansk today... is a real war that has already taken the lives of over 100 peaceful citizens," the office of mayor Sergiy Kravchenko said in a statement.

"After several months due to the blockade and incessant firing the city now finds itself on the verge of a humanitarian catastrophe."

Seized by rebels in April at the start of a brutal conflict that has now claimed over 1,150 lives, the city close to the Russian border has now seen its water and electricity cut off and Internet and telephone connection severed, the city administration said.

Ukraine rebel city of Lugansk on verge of 'humanitarian catastrophe'

Sorry not much to add but im getting sick of civilians getting killed.Its a sad state the world is in right now . We need to set up an arena and let the people who want fight kill each have at it.

There are now protests against conscription as well:

www.prisonplanet.com...

These poor people are being trapped in war between the political factions of the West and Russia, and expected to fight to the death for one or the other. Another Holodomor:

en.wikipedia.org...

Shame on these "sides" taking part on the murder of innocent citizens. That have no where to go many have left but obviously many are having a hard time leaving even if they wanted to.

It is deplorable. Russia claims they have gotten over 650,000 refugees already. Gee - I wonder why the people are not retreating to Kiev for safety and remaining in their homeland? Oh yea that's right....

a reply to: lightedhype

Maybe because there russian expats that wanted to seperate parts of ukraine to join mother russia.

Rebel city? What, with 420,000 rebels? what shameless propaganda, my uncles family lives in a suburb of Lugansk, Jesus.

originally posted by: lightedhype
It is deplorable. Russia claims they have gotten over 650,000 refugees already. Gee - I wonder why the people are not retreating to Kiev for safety and remaining in their homeland? Oh yea that's right....

Gee it couldn't be because Lugansk is almost on top of the Russian border whereas Kiev is a hellacious trek through rebel held cities and roads constantly try under bombardment from Kiev... No it must be because they love Russia and haye the new Ukrainian government... Look at an atlas sometime, they're quite handy.

You do have to wonder why Russia, so keen on arming the rebels and sending them weapons to prolong the conflict, isn't sending relief supplies to this city which is situated right on their border?

Surely, if their concern was for their "people", as they have claimed for their reason for being involved at all, they'd be sending food, medicine and other aid as well as rockets, tanks and SAM's.....

I do have to wonder just how serious this "humanitarian crisis" is and just how much of it is playing up to the media.. Russia knows if you play the "humanitarian card" you can use this to great effect in the Western media and populations.

originally posted by: lightedhype
It is deplorable. Russia claims they have gotten over 650,000 refugees already. Gee - I wonder why the people are not retreating to Kiev for safety and remaining in their homeland? Oh yea that's right....

Russias claims of hundreds of thousands of refugees were showen up as BS a couple of months ago.

Even after claiming there were over 600,00 refugees the Russians also said ther were 14,000 refugees, and just a few days ago - 28 July, the Ministry of Emergencies said it was 25,000

MOSCOW, July 18. /ITAR-TASS/. More than 25 thousand refugees from Ukraine are staying at Russia’s temporary accommodation centers,” spokesman for the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry (EMERCOM) Alexander Drobyshevsky reported on Friday.

Looks like even the Russians aren't believing their own propaganda any more!! :/

originally posted by: Aloysius the Gaul
Looks like even the Russians aren't believing their own propaganda any more!! :/

It's difficult to believe in something when the story keeps changing!

They have certainly lost the nack for propaganda since the Soviet days, that's for sure.

a reply to: stumason

Surely, if their concern was for their "people", as they have claimed for their reason for being involved at all, they'd be sending food, medicine and other aid as well as rockets, tanks and SAM's.....

They talk about Ukraine repressing the ethnic Russians in Ukraine, yet nobody seems to see the fact that Russia has repressed it's own people for decades.

So they don't care about the rest of Ukraine as they got what they wanted...Crimea. The rest is just something that Putin is doing to amuse himself.

And trying to keep his approval rating up with the Russian populace is his biggest concern...he doesn't want to lose his cash cow.

Bash all you please. My great grandparents were born in Odessa. You know - that 'rebel city' where the neo Nazi's torched a bunch of people? They immigrated to America in the early 1900's. Had they decided to wait just a decade longer? - they likely would have been executed by the original Nazi's in the ORIGINAL Odessa massacre.

Obviously Russia has its' faults. My grandparents could see way back then it'd be better to come to America than to stay in Russia. - Yes Russia has done this and Russia has done that. Yes Russia uses propaganda. SO WHAT?

Why does that excuse what Kiev is doing for you people?? Are you too brainwashed by your own media propaganda to realize the simple fact that what Kiev is doing is WRONG?

I have a personal connection to this # storm. I doubt many of you do.

As another poster said - Lugansk is a CITY of almost half a million people. According to western media it is nothing more than a 'rebel town' which is deserving of being shelled indiscriminately. Are you effing serious? Most of these poor people being shelled are just simple EUROPEANS not Russians (contrary to your beliefs) trying to go to work, put food on the table, stuff like that.

If Lugansk truly was a 'rebel city'; If that is the case, I have a newsflash for you - Kiev would be in a whole heap of trouble as the manpower from Lugansk alone would be able to overrun the entire Ukrainian military. But that is not the case. It is just more innocents being murdered under the guise of War. Kiev is wrong in this. So is Moscow.

It just makes me sick to see so many of you defending these actions because 'Russia and Putin are bad guys so it justifies killing civilians.' I bet some of you same people are ones who are crying nonstop over the Palestinians being killed by the Israeli's. This is no different.

I am appalled. Keep defending Kiev. Keep defending Tel Aviv. Support their murderous acts simply because you do not like their enemies. Go ahead. I'll keep my humanity thanks.

I sure hope for your guys' sake that armed conflict never breaks out in your respective regions. If it does - I assume you all would be A OKAY with your own government blowing your town up to bits simply because of its' geographical location. No? Didn't think so.

Also, you have gotta love that excuse you Kiev supporters love to use. Basically as follows - Our propaganda is 'better' and harder to see through so therefore it is okay and trumps Russian propaganda. Wrong again. All propaganda is bad.


/Rant over.


Excuse me. Like I said. I actually have a personal connection to this so it gets me pretty damn upset.

a reply to: lightedhype

Looking at this in perspective, the OP article quotes the Mayor as saying 100 people have died in the city since the rebellion started.

While any death is bad, 100 is not actually that bad at all. In fact, I should think a number of those 100 are in fact rebels, so relatively speaking in a city of 500k, civilian casualties are quite low.

In relation to Israel's attack on Gaza, for example, it's bloody good going.

I know this will be of little comfort should you know anyone there, but you have to keep things in perspective. Unfortunately, civilians are always the first to suffer in war.

originally posted by: tsurfer2000h
They talk about Ukraine repressing the ethnic Russians in Ukraine, yet nobody seems to see the fact that Russia has repressed it's own people for decades.

A couple of years ago I was corresponding with a Russian-speaking Ukrainian from the small city of Sverodonetsk - his problems were pretty much the same as Russia's - low pay (US$200/mth) & corruption.

There was no mention of any "oppression", nor of any desire to be part of "Russia" - indeed exactly the opposite - the feeling was that closer ties to Europe would be better, because clearly the European model was brining more prosperity to people than the Russian model.

the whole ultra-nationalist "rescue the (ethnic group you want to identify with) from (other ethnic group that probably isn't actually any different)" is a beat up that has always been a rallying call for politicians in trouble forever - even Herman Goering knew it -

Göring: Why, of course, the people don't want war. Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best that he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece? Naturally, the common people don't want war; neither in Russia nor in England nor in America, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a Parliament or a Communist dictatorship.
Gilbert: There is one difference. In a democracy, the people have some say in the matter through their elected representatives, and in the United States only Congress can declare wars.
Göring: Oh, that is all well and good, but, voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country.

a reply to: switchqm8

Yeah the rebels are so concerned about the civilians in the area that they have started taking their food and water supplies from them and redistributing them to the rebels.

a reply to: Xcathdra

Not to mention flogging flatbed trucks to carry their AA missiles on.....

www.ft.com...

a reply to: earthling42

I lend no credence to YT videos unless they explain exactly how they come to their conclusions and present the evidence like any other source should.

Same with nameless claims on the 'net.

ATS is already cursed with enough people believing shirt without any serious justification or supporting evidence being offered - I don't need to add to that idiocracy.

If there' a crime here it might well take years to investigate - then so be it. Until then bigoted accusations don't help anything except create hatred and more mindless violence.

a reply to: Aloysius the Gaul

There was a thread a few months back talking about a mass grave being located in Ukraine, and they blamed the Ukraine government forces for the deaths of the civilians. The problem with that video is it showed a mass grave going back to the Yugoslavia mess and not dealing with Ukraine.