Events in Ukraine on 18 August 2014.

Briefly about the most important today's events in our digest of events

that have happened in Ukraine today

"PRD" leaders introduced the death penalty

The self-proclaimed "People's Republic of Donetsk” has adopted its own "Criminal Code", which involves the death penalty, as reported by OstroV with a reference to a statement issued by the "PRD press-center".

The "PRD Criminal Code" was based on the principles of the Russian legal framework. It introduced the death penalty for especially serious crimes.

"Uragan" systems with cluster munitions used against ATO forces

The enemy has begun to use BM-27 rocket missile volley fire systems (MLRS) called "Uragan" in the territory of the ATO, the head of the group "Information Resistance" Dmytro Tymchuk reports.

The Uragan's calibre is 220 mm , whereas "Grad" systems have 122 mm.  "More to the point: As it has turned out, rebels use "Uragan" systems with cluster munitions to fire upon government forces, as a picture taken near our positions last week shows", he added.

National Security Council have confirmed that insurgents fired at refugees using Russian-made "GRADs"

The National Security Council has confirmed that militants did fire at a transport column of civilians in Lugansk region, a spokesman for the National Security Council Andriy Lysenko reported at a briefing.

"A lot of people were killed including women and children," he said.

Lysenko added the column was going through the combat zone near Khryashchuvate.

9 servicemen killed in the last 24 hours

9 soldiers were killed in the past 24 hours of the anti-terrorist operation, a spokesman for the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council information center (NSDC) Andriy Lysenko reported on Monday.

Apart from those, 20 others were wounded.

According to Lysenko, ATO forces engaged in fighting with separatists - near Mayorsk, Zhdanivka, Avdiivka, Novokaterynivka, Chervony Yar, Berezove, Ilovaysk, Zhovte, Luzhky and Petrivske settlements of Donetsk region and Leninske, Sabivka, Lutugine, Vesela Tarasivka settlements of Lugansk region - in total 25 times during past 24 hours.

National Security Council: Terrorists have not given firm security assurances to "Putin's convoy"

Experts have not started a thorough content inspection of the Russian "humanitarian convoy" yet, a spokesman for the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council Andriy Lysenko reported at a briefing on Monday.

"As of 11 a.m., no inspection procedures have been launched taking into consideration that no guarantees of safety have been issued by terrorist groups," Lysenko said.

"A thorough content examination of the Russian "humanitarian convoy" has not been launched yet. OSCE experts plan to conduct one either today or tomorrow," he added.

According to Lysenko, Ukrainian border guards reportedly prevented an illegal attempt to bring part of the convoy into the territory of Ukraine on Sunday.

National Security Council: ATO forces have liberated part of Lugansk

Ukrainian forces have managed to win back part of Lugansk, a spokesman for the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council information center reported at a briefing on Monday.

According to him, a local police department was freed earlier today.

National Security and Defense Council has afforded proof of Russian aggression

Russia continues to bombard positions of Ukrainian forces using "Grad" systems, a spokesman for the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council Andriy Lysenko reported.

Additionally, a video recorded near the town of Snizhne was shown to journalists.

"It features rebels of Caucasian ethnicity standing around armored vehicles. One of the armored carriers is a Russian-made modified armored personnel carrier called BTR 80 A. It has a distinctive characteristic - a 2A72 cannon produced by the Tula Plant (Russian Federation), which is exclusively employed by the Armed Forces of Russia", Lysenko stressed.

A Polish journalist managed to record a video featuring a convoy of Russian military vehicles crossing the border into Ukraine, Lysenko said.