Snizhne or Snezhnoye (Ukrainian: Сніжне, IPA: [s⁽ʲ⁾n⁽ʲ⁾iʒˈnɛ]; Russian: Снежное), formerly known as Vasylivka (Ukrainian: Василівка) until 1864, is a city in Horlivka Raion, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine. The eastern edge of Snizhne is adjacent to administrative border of Luhansk Oblast. Its population is 45,767 (2022 estimate).[2]

Snizhne
Сніжне
City
Mining company office in Snizhne
Mining company office in Snizhne
Flag of Snizhne
Official seal of Snizhne
Snizhne is located in Donetsk Oblast
Snizhne
Snizhne
Snizhne is located in Ukraine
Snizhne
Snizhne
Coordinates: 48°01′41.8″N 38°45′56.2″E / 48.028278°N 38.765611°E / 48.028278; 38.765611
Country Ukraine
OblastDonetsk Oblast
RaionHorlivka Raion
HromadaSnizhne urban hromada
Founded1784
Incorporated1938
Area
 • Total87.2 km2 (33.7 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[1]
 • Total49,564
ClimateDfb
Websitesnezhnoe-rada.gov.ua
Map

History

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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.[citation needed]

During the 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine the town was held by separatists. On 15 July 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 14 July 2014, they have carried out no flights there. Instead they blamed Russian jets.[3]

After the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 on 17 July 2014, a YouTube video and photo emerged with citizen journalists claiming the material was from Snizhne and showed a Buk missile launcher.[4] In September 2016 a Joint Investigation Team confirmed that the plane had been downed by a 9M38 BUK missile launched from a rebel-controlled area near the 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 effective control of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic.[9]

Demographics

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As of the 2001 Ukrainian Census, reported ethnicity and language preferences were:[10][needs update]

Ethnicity
  • Ukrainians: 51.3%
  • Russians: 41%
  • Belarusians: 1.0%
  • Tatars: 0.9%
  • Armenians: 0.2%
  • Greeks: 0.2%
Language

Economy

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  • Snizhneantratsyt
  • Snizhne Engineering Factory (a branch of Motor Sich)
  • Snizhnianskkhimmash, a factory of chemical engineering
  • Sofyino-Brodska train station
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References

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  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 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. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 July 2022.
  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". www.kickstarter.com.
  5. ^ "JIT: MH17 shot down with missile fired from pro-Russian rebel controlled field". Archived from the original on 2020-04-09. Retrieved 2016-09-29.
  6. ^ "ATO forces take over Debaltseve, Shakhtarsk, Torez, Lutuhyne, fighting for Pervomaisk and Snizhne underway - ATO press center". en.interfax.com.ua.
  7. ^ "Ukrainian News - Intrernal server error". Archived from the original on 2014-08-11. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
  8. ^ "MH17: AFP again abandon bid to reach Malaysia Airlines crash site after driving into battle zone - Yahoo!7". Archived from the original on 2014-08-14. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
  9. ^ "Third summer of occupation". www.unian.info. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  10. ^ "Home". ukrcensus.gov.ua.
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  Media related to Snizhne at Wikimedia Commons