Savur-Mohyla

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Savur-Mohyla Memorial
 Soviet Union
Саур-Могила.jpg
Savur-Mohyla Memorial, 2008
For Red Army soldiers fallen during World War II
Unveiled 1963
Location near Snizhne
Designed by Anatoly Ignashchenko

Savur-Mohyla (Ukrainian: Савур-могила), sometimes transcribed as Savur-Mogila or Saur-Mogila (Russian: Саур-Могила), is a strategic height in the Donets ridge near the city of Snezhnoye, located about 5 km (3.1 mi) away from the border between Ukraine and Russia (Rostov Oblast).

It is originally a tumulus (kurgan) - "mohyla" means "tumulus" in Ukrainian and according to one interpretation the word "Savur" comes from Turkic "Sauyr", meaning "steppe mound shaped like horse bottom."

World War II[edit]

During the Great Patriotic War, Saur-Mohyla was the focal point of intense fighting. Only in August 1943, Soviet troops managed to retake control of the height from German forces. In 1963 a memorial complex was unveiled on the top of the hill to honour the fallen soldiers.[1]

2014 war in Donbass[edit]

In 2014, during the long-time military conflict between Ukrainian troops and Donbass pro-Russian fighters, the Saur-Mohyla height was captured by the pro-Russian fighters. On July 23, 2014, separatists shot down two Ukrainian Air Force Sukhoi Su-25 (NATO reporting name "Frogfoot") ground-attack aircraft flying at 17,000 feet (5,182 meters) over Saur-Mohyla, using Russian AA systems.[2][3]

On July 28, 2014, after intense fighting, the Armed Forces of Ukraine claimed that they recaptured control of Saur-Mohyla from the pro-Russian insurgents.[4] However commander of the pro-Russian Donetsk People's Republic separatists Igor Girkin, denied Savur-Mohyla had been lost, saying fighting was continuing.[5] Followings its capture by the Ukrainian army on August 9, 2014,[6] the insurgents recaptured the hill on August 26, 2014.[7][8] During the fighting the hill changed hands about 8 times.

Destruction of the memorial[edit]

On August 21, 2014, the memorial's obelisk collapsed after enduring weeks of heavy shelling.[7][9]

References[edit]

Coordinates: 47°55′22.75″N 38°44′25.94″E / 47.9229861°N 38.7405389°E / 47.9229861; 38.7405389