ConflictBarometer_2016

EUROPE
sia, on the other, continued.
The UN and several human rights organizations criticized the
human rights situation, particularly with regard to the situation
of the Crimean Tatars, on various occasions. Their right
of self-determination, for instance, was further restricted. On
March 13, Crimean authorities declared the Mejlis of the
Crimean Tatar people, an executive and representative institution
of the community, an extremist organization and
banned its activity in Crimea and Russia. On May 26, Crimea's
Supreme Court ratified this decision, which was confirmed by
Russia's Supreme Court on September 29. On May 12, the
Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) arrested Ilmi Umerov,
a deputy chairman of the Mejlis, who was accused of making
''public calls and actions aimed at undermining the territorial
integrity of the Russian Federation.” Moreover, at least
eleven Crimean Tatars were arrested for their membership in
the Hizb-ut-Tahrir organization, which is illegal under Russian,
but not Ukrainian law.
On several occasions, groups of Crimean Tatars were subjected
to temporary detentions. On April 1, armed and
masked men stormed acafé in Pionerske, destroyed furniture
and temporarily detained 35 Crimean Tatars. In addition,
security forces stormed a mosque in Molodizhne and
arrested around 100 people on May 6. The police released
them afterafew hours ofinterrogation. On March 7, the Simferopol
city administration prohibited all public rallies and
events not organized by the authorities, thereby further restricting
the freedom of assembly of minorities, including the
Crimean Tatar community.
Abductions of Crimean Tatars allegedly due to political motivations
continued in 2016. On May 24, a group of men abducted
Crimean Tatar activist Ervin Ibragimov in front of his
house in Bakhchysarai. The UN repeatedly called on Crimean
authorities to investigate this and similar cases in previous
years, but to date no one was held accountable. bew
UKRAINE (DONBAS)
Intensity: 5 | Change: | Start: 2014
Conflict parties: DPR, LPR vs. government, Volunteer
battalions
Conflict items: secession, system/ideology, resources
The war over secession, the orientation of the political system,
and resources in the Donbas region between several militant
anti-government groups, including the self-proclaimed
Donetsk (DPR) and Luhansk (LPR) People's Republics supported
by Russia, on the one hand, and the Ukrainian government,
supported by Western countries, as well as more than
ten mostly nationalist volunteer battalions, on the other, continued.
The affected region was comprised of Donetsk and
50
Luhansk oblasts in eastern Ukraine.
According to the UN, 9,758 people were killed and 22,779
injured since the beginning of the conflict in April 2014 until
early December this year. This year, 83 civilians were killed
and 305 injured as a result of shelling and mine explosions,
marking a notable decrease compared to last year. The number
offatalities was significantly higher in LPR and DPR than
in government-controlled territories. Unlike previous years,
the Ukrainian Armed Forces (ZSU) did not lose territories to
the militants and retook positions in the area of Svitlodarsk,
Donetsk oblast, in December. The government reported that
211 soldiers were killed and approx. 1,300 injured in 2016,
while at least 100militants were killed. Reportedly, between
488 and 1,376 people went missing. Approx. 106,000 inhabitants
were internally displaced, significantly less than in
the two previous years. Furthermore, residential areas and
infrastructure were heavily damaged. Civilians suffered from
restrictions offreedom of movement and speech, as well as
lack offood, water, energy, and shelter. International organizations
highlighted that the humanitarian situation remained
serious and held both sides accountable. In addition, eleven
convoys, allegedly transporting humanitarian aid from Russia,
arrived in Donbas. Like in earlier years, the government
accused Russia of supplying DPR and LPR with weapons [→
Russia–Ukraine].
Throughout the year, both sides blamed each other for
committing war crimes, breaking the ceasefires, and using
weapons banned under the terms of the Minsk II Agreement.
The parties agreed on several ceasefires, which both sides
violated frequently. From the second half of January onward,
ceasefire violations and fighting intensified until the end of
March. For instance, on February 16, SMM counted 159 explosions,
37 bursts, and 127 single shots at the railway station
in Donetsk, eponymous oblast. In Luhansk oblast, SMM
reported 49 explosions. On February 22, SMM observed a
total of 794 ceasefire violations in Donetsk oblast. Two days
later, the monitoring mission recorded 91 undetermined explosions,
190 bursts of small arms, and machine gunfire on
their position at the railway station in Donetsk. On March
1, three soldiers were killed and two wounded when their
car hit an anti-personnel mine near the villages of Novotoshkivske,
Luhansk oblast. Despite regular ceasefire violations,
the number of casualties remained relatively low in the
first three months of the year.
Violence, however, increased in April. On April 14, SMM
recorded over 4,000 ceasefire violations, among them 500
explosions in the Avdiivka-Yasynuvata areas, Donetsk oblast.
On April 27, four civilians were killed in shellings from 122
mm artillery at the DPR checkpoint near Olenivka, Donetsk
oblast. Two days later, the Trilateral Contact Group consisting
of representatives of Russia, Ukraine, and the OSCE agreed
on aceasefire during the Orthodox Easter weekend, starting
from April 30. The same night, ZSU forces clashed with
DPR and LPR militants in different locations in Donetsk oblast,
which left two militants and one soldier dead as well as seven
soldiers wounded. On May 23, seven soldiers were killed and
nine wounded by shellings and IEDs, marking the highest
number offatalities since autumn 2015. Four days later, an
SMM drone was shot down over DPR-controlled Ozerianivka,
Donetsk oblast. At least eight soldiers were killed and twelve
injured in clashes near Donetsk and Mariupol on May 29 and