An explosion in Syria || Ceasefire in Donbass

1 Syria — An explosion

The ‘SANA’ news agency reported that an explosion took place on Sunday in the city of Ras al-Ain, in north-eastern Syria, near the border with Turkey. The explosion killed 8 people and injured more than 10. The city and the border region are under control of the pro-Turkish forces of the armed Syrian opposition. The ‘Al Arabiya’ TV reported that 19 people were injured in an explosion in Ras al-Ain. The explosion took place near the local market — it was specified that it was a car bomb.

2 Donbass — Ukraine

The DPR denied the allegations from Ukraine regarding the ceasefire violation on Monday, after the additional ceasefire measures went into effect. «That statement is yet another informational provocation from Ukraine, aimed to destabilize the situation. The DPR People’s Militia forces strictly comply with their obligations» — the DPR office in the Joint Center for the Control and Coordination of the Ceasefire Regime stated. «Taking into account the public position of the official representatives of Kiev, who declare on all social media platforms their readiness to give an armed response to any actions — it is obvious that the purpose of such provocations is to justify their aggression» — the statement explained. Earlier, the commander of the combined forces of Ukraine, Vladimir Kravchenko, stated that the republics of Donbass violated the ceasefire in Donbass twice. He underlined that Ukraine didn’t return fire. Additional measures to ensure the ceasefire and to monitor its observance came into force on 27th of July.

3 Azerbaijan — Armenia

The Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan reported that over the past day, 45 attacks were made on the positions of the Azerbaijani troops in the area of ​​the contact line in the Nagorno-Karabakh, and on the border with Armenia. «The armed forces of Armenia, using large-caliber machine guns and sniper rifles, violated the ceasefire 45 times at several areas of the frontline during the day» — the press service of the Azerbajani defense ministry reported. Baku also reported the shelling of the positions of Azerbaijani forces from the territory of the settlements near Nagorno-Karabakh, which are under control of the Armenian forces. The press service of the Armenian Defense Ministry reported that one Armenian soldier was killed as a result of a shelling from Azerbaijan.

4 Azerbaijan — Turkey

The press service of the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry reported that from 29th of July to 10th of August there will be joint Azerbaijani-Turkish military exercises with the participation of the ground and air forces of both countries. The joint exercises will involve armored vehicles, artillery pieces and mortars, as well as military aviation and air defense forces of the two countries. It was reported that «according to the plan, the exercises with the involvement of the ground forces will be held from 1st to 5th of August in Baku and Nakhichevan. The exercises with the participation of military aviation will be held from 29th of July to 10th of August in Baku, Nakhichevan, Ganja, Kurdamir and Yevlakh.»

5 China — The USA

The US Consulate General in Chengdu was closed. The Chinese Foreign Ministry stated that the building of the US Consulate General in Chengdu, south-west of China, was handed over to the Chinese government after it was officially closed. It was reported that by 10AM, local time, the last member of the diplomatic mission officially left the building. The local media outlets noted that over the weekend, the US insignia were also removed from the walls and fencing. The ‘Associated Press’ reported that the US State Department has confirmed the termination of the work of the US Consulate General in Chengdu.