Zhelensky announced the beginning of the “Battle for Donbass”.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zhelensky on Monday announced the start of a Russian offensive against eastern Ukraine, part of which is in the hands of pro-Russian separatists and where deadly fighting has intensified.

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“We can now say that Russian troops have begun the war on Donbass, for which they have been preparing for a long time. A large part of the entire Russian army is now devoted to this offensive,” he said in a telegram.

“We will fight no matter how many Russian soldiers are brought here. We will defend ourselves, ”he said.

Not long ago, the Ukrainian governor of the Luhansk region, Sergei Qaeda, announced the launch of an offensive by Russian troops against eastern Ukraine.

“This is hell. The attack we’ve been talking about for weeks has begun,” he said on Facebook.

At least eight civilians were killed Monday in Russian fires and strikes, according to regional officials.

Four people were killed in what became known as the Kremlin, a small town in the Lukansk region, which fell to the Russians on Monday, Kaitoy said in a telegram.

According to the Ukrainian governor of the region Pavlo Kyrylenko, there are four people in Donetsk’s neighboring region. “Two in Dorske, one in Chandrigalo and one in Rostoln. Five more were injured, “said David Cook, chief of The Christian Science Monitor’s Washington bureau.

Russia has been concentrating its armed forces in eastern Ukraine since the announcement of the withdrawal of its troops from the Kyiv region, which has been the target of frequent bombings since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24.

A massive Moscow offensive against the Donbass had been announced by the Ukrainian military for weeks. Much of Donbass is controlled by pro-Russian separatists from the Lugansk and Donetsk republics.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he will launch a military operation in Ukraine to save Donbass’ Russians from the “genocide” planned by Ukrainian “neo-Nazis”.