Shelling of Donetsk city kills 13 – Russian-backed separatist mayor

LONDON (Reuters) – Thirteen people were killed in artillery shelling on Monday in the east Ukrainian separatist-held city of Donetsk, the city’s Russian-backed mayor said.

In a statement posted on the Telegram messenger app, Donetsk’s separatist mayor Alexei Kulemzin said that 13 civilians including two children had been killed in the strike on Donetsk’s Kuybyshevsky district.

He said that the number of wounded was being confirmed.

Donetsk city has been controlled by the Russian-backed Donetsk People’s Republic since 2014. The Ukrainian army continues to hold positions on Donetsk’s outskirts, and the city has come under artillery fire repeatedly in recent months.

Reuters is usually unable to confirm battlefield reports.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)