Five years ago, on August 10, 2015, residents in a village located halfway between Donetsk and Mariupol reported exchanges of heavy mortar and rocket fire that had not stopped for several days. The clashes focused on a highway that connects Mariupol with Donetsk, and the majority of the road was under the control of the government forces.
Also on August 10, the Ukrainian military reported the heaviest shelling by Russia-backed militants since the Minsk truce was signed in February 2015.
On August 12, a Ukrainian military spokesman said that the clashes in the north of the strategic city of Mariupol had killed one soldier and injured three.