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What the March 2021 Donbas attack signalled
Summary
A look back at a deadly separatist rocket strike on a Ukrainian position in Donetsk Oblast, and at a separate Turkish complaint to Russia over Idlib.
What made 26 March 2021 stand out on the front line in eastern Ukraine? A separatist rocket attack on a Ukrainian military position in Donetsk Oblast killed four troops and wounded two others. It was the worst loss of life in a single attack for Ukrainian forces since 2019.
The toll matters because of the comparison it invites. For roughly two years, no single strike had cost Ukrainian forces as many lives, and the attack ended that run in the war in Donbass.
A separate regional thread ran alongside it. On 21 March 2021, according to the Turkish Ministry of National Defense, Russian jets struck gas facilities in the town of Sarmada in Idlib Governorate, near the Turkish border, and hit Qah with a surface-to-surface missile. Turkey said it had sent Russia a statement asking for the attacks to stop immediately.
The two episodes are separate. Both, however, involved Russian or Russian-backed force in conflicts bordering the Black Sea region and the Middle East, and both showed fighting continuing in March 2021 despite diplomatic exchanges.
