Here is today's map of the latest situation in the Donbas conflict zone according to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry. (CLICK TO ENLARGE)
Here's a Sentsov update from our news desk:
Russian Rights Official Allowed To Visit Hunger-Striking Sentsov In Prison
Russia's Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) has allowed a member of Russia's Presidential Advisory Council On Human Rights to visit Ukrainian filmmaker Oleh Sentsov, who has been on hunger strike in a Russian prison for the past three months.
Advisory Council Chairman Mikhail Fedotov wrote on Twitter on August 14 that his colleague Zoya Svetova has received the permission to visit Sentsov.
A vocal opponent of Russia's 2014 takeover of Crimea, Sentsov was sentenced to 20 years in prison after being convicted by a Russian court in 2015 of conspiring to commit terrorist acts -- charges he and human rights groups say were politically motivated.
Sentsov, 42, is being held in a penal colony in Labytnangi in Russia's northern region of Yamalo-Nenets. He has been on a hunger strike there since mid-May and is demanding that Russia release 64 Ukrainian citizens he considers political prisoners.
He has indicated that he is prepared to die of starvation to press the cause, vowing to continue his protest "to the end."
On August 10, French President Emmanuel Macron raised the issue of Sentsov's plight during a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin promised "to respond and quickly release details on Sentsov's health," the French presidency said.
'Catastrophically Bad' Health
Meanwhile, the European Union on August 10 urged Russian authorities to move Sentsov to a medical facility and give him appropriate medical care.
Sentsov's lawyer, Dmitry Dinze, said on August 10 that Sentsov is "ready to die" and after visiting him on August 7 said his client had lost 30 kilograms.
On August 11, FSIN rejected Dinze's statement, saying his remarks about Sentsov's losing 30-kilograms "does not correspond to reality," and adding that Sentsov does not require emergency hospitalization.
Maja Kocijancic, a spokeswoman for EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, said the EU expects Russia "to provide [Sentsov] with appropriate treatment in an institutionalized medical setting."
Sentsov is currently being sustained with water and a drip with glucose and vitamins. In addition to losing 30 kilograms, Dinze also said earlier this week that Sentsov's heart rate has slowed and his red blood cell levels were very low.
A cousin of Sentsov said on August 8 that the filmmaker is in a "catastrophically bad" state of health and could be close to death.
Ukrainian Ombudswoman Lyudmyla Denisova said on August 9 that "rapid actions" are needed to save Sentsov's life.
Several governments and prominent figures have called on Putin to pardon Sentsov. But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said he would have to formally request a pardon himself before it could be considered.
Sentsov has said he will not ask for a pardon because he has not committed a crime.
Latvian singer Laima Vaikule, who was a big star in the former U.S.S.R., has raised hackles in Crimea, because she vowed not to perform on the annexed peninsula (in accordance with an EU directive).