The situation in Donbass escalated on the morning of February 17. In the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR), they reported the most active shelling from Ukraine in recent months. They caused damage to a number of civilian infrastructure facilities. Against the backdrop of these events, on February 18, the DPR and LPR announced the organization of the departure of the population to Russia. The next day, the heads of the republics Denis Pushilin and Leonid Pasechnik signed decrees on general mobilization.
More details in the TASS online broadcast.