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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Unconfirmed: Ataman Kositsyn dies in sniper attack |
| 2017-07-09 |
| Ukrainians are saying that Cossack formation commander Ataman Kozitsyn has been killed by a sniper. Unconfirmed. Kozitsyn has disappeared directly after the Battle of Debaltsevo, and it was rumored ( and I totally bought into the rumor) that he was invited for a "sit down" in Russia, and killed. Last year Kozitsyn appeared back in Lugansk, presumably as a formation commander. It has to be noted at this point that the Lugansk political leadership (in my opinion and the opinion of several other native Russian speakers in southeastern Ukraine) had killed or wiped out just about every Cossack formation commander and broke up every Cossack formation, all over a three year period. Kozitsyn is regarded as a criminal among Ukrainian military journalists for his actions during the summer of 2014, when open warfare between Russian backed rebels and the Ukrainians began. and during the battle of Debaltsevo in February, 2015. Kozitsyn's formation has participated in mopping up operations in the later days of the battle, not in the direct assault. Kozitsyn and his fellow Cossacks had run afoul of the political leadership pf both Donetsk and Lugansk after they protested, vigorously, the collaboration between the political leadership of Donetsk and Lugansk, and the Ukrainians. |
| Posted by:badanov |