Snizhne

Snizhne or Snezhnoye (Ukrainian: Сніжне; Russian: Снежное; until 1864 — Vasylivka — Ukrainian: Василівка) is a significant regional city in eastern Ukraine within the Donetsk Oblast, currently under control of the Donetsk People's Republic. Along with cities of Shakhtarsk and Torez, it is surrounded by Shakhtarsk Raion, according to the regional territorial division. The eastern edge of Snizhne is adjacent to administrative border of Luhansk Oblast. Its population is approximately 47,259 (2017 est.)[2].

Snizhne (Сніжне)
City of regional significance
Mining company office in Snizhne
Flag
Seal
Snizhne (Сніжне)
Snizhne (Сніжне)
Coordinates: 48°01′41.8″N 38°45′56.2″E
CountryUkraine
OblastDonetsk
Founded1784
Incorporated1938
Area
 • Total87.2 km2 (33.7 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[1]
 • Total49,564
ClimateDfb
Websitesnezhnoe-rada.gov.ua

History

The settlement was established in 1784 as a "winter place" Vasylivka (Vasilyevka) by Don Cossacks and was part of the Taganrog city municipality. In 1864 it was renamed as Snizhne/Snezhnoye which literally means Snowy.

During the 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine the town was held by separatists. On July 15, 2014, rockets from an unidentified aircraft struck the town hitting an apartment building and a tax office, leaving at least eleven people dead and eight injured. Separatists blamed the Ukrainian Air Force for the attack, but Ukrainian sources denied it and stated that since the incident where an An-26 plane was shot down on July 14, 2014, they have carried out no flights there. Instead they blamed Russian jets.[3]

After the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 on July 17, 2014, a YouTube video and photo emerged with citizen journalists claiming the material was from Snizhne and showed a Buk missile launcher.[4] On 28 September 2016, the Joint Investigation Team, investigating into the shoot down, confirmed that the aircraft had been brought down with a 9M38 BUK missile which had been fired from a rebel-controlled field near town of Pervomaiske, 6 km (3.7 mi) south of Snizhne.[5]

Fighting for the control of the town between the separatists and the Ukrainian army broke out on 28 July 2014.[6][7][8] Snizhne remained under the separatist control of the Donetsk People's Republic.[9]

Demographics

As of the 2001 Ukrainian Census:[10]

Ethnicity
  • Ukrainians: 51.3%
  • Russians: 45.1%
  • Belarusians: 1.0%
  • Tatars: 0.9%
  • Armenians: 0.2%
  • Greeks: 0.2%
Language

Economy
  • Snizhneantratsyt
  • Snizhne Engineering Factory (a branch of Motor Sich)
  • Snizhnianskkhimmash, a factory of chemical engineering
  • Sofyino-Brodska train station
  • Mine № 9
  • Yuri Gagarin monument
  • School №1
  • Military museum
  • Church
  • Monument
  • St. Dmytro Church
  • Water tower
  • Sofino-Bridska rail station
  • Snizhne apartment blocks

References
  1. Государственный комитет статистики Украины. Численность населения Украины на 1 января 2011 года (Державний комітет статистики України. Чисельність наявного населення України на 1 січня 2011 року
  2. "Чисельність наявного населення України (Actual population of Ukraine)" (in Ukrainian). State Statistics Service of Ukraine. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  3. "Ukraine conflict: Jet bombs rebel-held town of Snizhne". BBC. 15 July 2014.
  4. "How Open Source Investigation Found The Buk Missile Launcher That Downed Flight MH17".
  5. "JIT: MH17 shot down with missile fired from pro-Russian rebel controlled field".
  6. http://en.interfax.com.ua/news/general/215712.html
  7. http://un.ua/eng/article/523380.html
  8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-08-14. Retrieved 2014-07-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. http://www.unian.info/society/1441927-third-summer-of-occupation.html


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