Donetsk, Mar 31 - DAN. Donetsk People’s Republic militiamen have killed 42 gunmen of Ukrainian armed formations over the past 24 hours, DPR People’s Militia deputy commander Eduard Basurin said on Thursday.

“Over the past 24 hours, our servicemen have destroyed 42 Ukrainian nationalists, 13 fire positions, two infantry fighting vehicles, one armored vehicle and one truck,” Basurin said. “One tank, one armored maintenance and recover vehicle and two armored vehicles have been captured.”

Fifteen servicemen from the Ukrainian army’s 25th Airborne Brigade, 56th Motorized Infantry Brigade and 30th Mechanized Brigade have turned themselves in to DPR forces, he added.

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the beginning of a special military operation in Ukraine. On the same day, the DPR and LPR forces launched a liberation movement in the Donbass region.*jk