Marinka, Ukraine

Marinka or Maryinka (Ukrainian: Ма́р'їнка, IPA: [ˈmɑrjinkɐ]; Russian: Марьинка) is a city in Pokrovsk Raion, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. Population: 9,089 (2022 est.);[2] 10,722 (2001).

Marinka
Мар'їнка
City
Our Lady of Kazan Orthodox Cathedral in Marinka in 2014
Our Lady of Kazan Orthodox Cathedral in Marinka in 2014
Marinka is located in Donetsk Oblast
Marinka
Marinka
Marinka is located in Ukraine
Marinka
Marinka
Coordinates: 47°56′31″N 37°30′13″E
Country Ukraine
Oblast Donetsk Oblast
RaionPokrovsk Raion
Founded1840s[1]
Population
 (2022)
 • Total9,089
 • Estimate 
(2023)
0

During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the city was largely destroyed as a result of ongoing fighting, with no civilians living in the town since November 2022.[3][4][5]

Early history

Sometime after the 1775 liquidation of Zaporizhian Sich, lands of Kalmius Palatine were initially passed to the Greek re-settlers.[6] However, according to the general plan of the Aleksandrovsk county of the 1830s, the area of Maryinka and surrounding villages was not colonized.[6] After the final demarcation of the government land, in the 1840s, on territory not colonized by Greeks, former Ukrainian Cossacks and state peasants (see state serf) from various counties of Poltava Governorate and Kharkov Governorate[6] moved there. After the partition of Poland, at the end of 18th century here were also exiled Polish people from the Kiev and Podolia governorates who also were under a special supervision by the local administration.[6] Unlike the state peasants who used a community land, the exiled Poles were considered as landowners ("odnodvortsy").[6]

By 1859 there were 1,318 people.[6] As a state village, Marinka belonged to the fourth stan of Aleksandrovsk county, Yekaterinoslav Governorate.[6] The village administration consisted of a village senior (head of village), a tax collector, a secretary, and a supervisor.[6]

The city was under German occupation between 1941 and 1943. Having been locked up in the police station, the Jews of the city (and the surrounding villages) were killed in a mass execution by an Einsatzgruppe. The site of the massacre is located in a pit near the cemetery.[7]

Russo-Ukrainian War
August 2014: Ukrainian flag over the radio tower in Marinka
Main articles: Russo-Ukrainian War and War in Donbas (2014–2022)

Starting in mid-April 2014 Russian-backed paramilitaries captured several towns in Donetsk Oblast,[8][9] including Marinka.[10] On 5 August 2014, Ukrainian forces regained control of Marinka.[11] Ukrainian forces involved in the recapture included the Azov Battalion, whose flag flew in the city in early August.[12] In this operation one volunteer fighter was killed (a member of Azov, a Russian citizen) and 14 wounded (9 in an explosion of a Ukrainian tank due to an anti-tank mine).[13]

The city was shelled on a regular basis, with Ukrainian troops returning fire.[14] Pro-Russian fighters accused Ukrainian troops of using their positions in Marinka to shell militant-controlled Donetsk - a claim denied by the Ukrainian military.[4]

Three people died close to a checkpoint on 10 February 2016 when a minibus while bypassing a queue drove roadside and hit a land mine.[15] The driver had ignored land mine warning signs.[15]

According to Ukrainian MP Iryna Herashchenko, in September 2016 5,000 people lived in Marinka.[3]

Battle of Marinka
Main article: Battle of Marinka (2015)

On 3 June 2015, fresh violence returned to the area as pro-Russian combatants launched an offensive on the city involving 1,000 fighters, tanks and heavy artillery.[4][16] They stated they only engaged in defence measures after an assault by the Ukrainian army.[17] By then the town had already been devastated by months of heavy fighting.[4]

According to the BBC, the 3 June 2015 fighting was the heaviest of the war in Donbas since the so-called Minsk II ceasefire was signed on 11 February 2015.[4][18] In the early evening of 3 June 2015, Donetsk People's Republic's Defence Minister Vladimir Kononov and the Ukrainian military confirmed to the OSCE that Marinka was under Ukrainian control.[19] According to OSCE figures, 28 people, including 9 civilians, were killed in Marinka on 3 June 2015.[20]

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
Main article: Battle of Marinka (2022–2023)

On 17 March 2022, refreshed battles for Marinka began following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. In the process, much of the city was destroyed, with only a few residents remaining as of May 2022, according to Der Spiegel.[21] One reporter likened Marinka in January 2023 to an "urban hellscape".[5] During the battle, buildings were purposefully destroyed in order to prevent them from being used as cover.[22]

  • Central part of Marinka
    Central part of Marinka
  • World War II memorial
    World War II memorial
  • Administrative building
    Administrative building
  • Afghan War memorial in city park
    Afghan War memorial in city park

References
  1. Marinka Archived 2016-03-09 at the Wayback Machine in the Encyclopedia of Ukraine
  2. Чисельність наявного населення України на 1 січня 2022 [Number of Present Population of Ukraine, as of January 1, 2022] (PDF) (in Ukrainian and English). Kyiv: State Statistics Service of Ukraine.
  3. Only three EU parliamentarians out of 20 mustered courage to visit eastern Ukraine Archived 2016-09-21 at the Wayback Machine, Ukraine Today (20 September 2016)
  4. Ukraine crisis: Violence flares up near Donetsk Archived 2022-02-23 at the Wayback Machine, BBC News (3 June 2015)
  5. ALTMAN, HOWARD (17 January 2023). "Ukraine Situation Report: The Urban Hellscape That Is Maryinka". Recurrent Ventures. The Drive.
  6. Maryinka in The History of Cities and Villages of the Ukrainian SSR
  7. "Execution of Jews in Maryinka" Archived 2016-03-16 at the Wayback Machine, Yahad – In Unum.
  8. Ragozin, Leonid, "Vladimir Putin Is Accidentally Bringing Eastern and Western Ukraine Together" Archived 2017-05-17 at the Wayback Machine, newrepublic.com, 16 April 2014.
  9. "Donbass defenders put WWII tank back into service" Archived 2014-10-21 at the Wayback Machine, en.itar-tass.com, 6 June 2014.
  10. "Airstrike kills nine as apartment block demolished in Ukraine" Archived 2014-08-08 at the Wayback Machine, irishtimes.com, 15 July 2014.
  11. "Ukraine fighting reaches rebel-held Donetsk" Archived 2014-08-05 at the Wayback Machine, AP, 5 August 2014.
  12. Kramer, Andrew E., "Ukraine Strategy Bets On Restraint by Russia" Archived 2017-02-05 at the Wayback Machine, New York Times, 9 August 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-09.
  13. We Can Win After All Archived 2022-03-24 at the Wayback Machine, The Ukrainian Week (6 August 2015)
  14. Civilians Stuck in the Middle of Donbass Horror Archived 2016-04-19 at the Wayback Machine, Moscow Times (29 July 2015)
  15. Three killed as passenger bus hits mine in east Ukraine Archived 2020-12-02 at the Wayback Machine, Yahoo! News (10 February 2015)
    WAR Death toll from Maryinka land mine blast grows to 4 (Photo) Archived 2017-10-19 at the Wayback Machine, UNIAN (10 February 2016)
  16. Kremlin-separatist forces try to take Maryinka as fighting breaks out along front line Archived 2015-06-03 at the Wayback Machine, Kyiv Post (3 June 2015)
  17. Ukraine at risk of return to full war after major battle in Donetsk Archived 2016-08-26 at the Wayback Machine, The Guardian (3 June 2015)
  18. "Ukraine ceasefire deal agreed at Belarus talks". The Guardian. 12 February 2015. Archived from the original on 12 February 2015. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
  19. Spot report by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), 3 June 2015: Fighting around Marinka Archived 2 March 2022 at the Wayback Machine, OSCE (4 June 2015)
  20. 28 killed in recent Maryinka battle – UN Archived 2016-08-28 at the Wayback Machine, Ukraine Today (5 June 2015)
  21. Sarovic, Alexander (2022-05-10). "Staryna's Mission: The Elite Ukrainian Soldiers Defending the Donbas". Der Spiegel. ISSN 2195-1349. Retrieved 2023-01-04.
  22. "Drone footage of Maryinka city that was turned into ruins by Russians". Kanal 13. 25 February 2023. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
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