M120-15 Molot mortar. Source: Wikipedia
On July 6, three soldiers were killed and nine others were injured in an explosion of Ukraine’s “modern” M120-15 Molot mortar during drills on a training ground in the region of Rivne in the northwestern part of the coutnry, according to a report of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry.
The killed soldiers were from the 15th Separate Mountain Infantry Battalion of the 128th Separate Mountain Infantry Brigade.
Following the incident, President Petr Poroshenko has banned the use of Molot mortars during military exercises.
The July 6 incident is not the first deadly explosion of the Molot mortar, which was “developed” in Ukraine in 2015 and entered service with the country’s armed forces in 2016. The Molot mortar is based on the Sovie 2B11 120 mm mortar.
In July 2016, two people were killed during a mortar explosion at the Shyrokyy Lan training ground in the region of Nikolaev. In March 2017, three people were killed in a Mortar explosion in the village of Avdeevka at the contact line between pro-Kiev forces and forces of the Donetsk and Luganks People’s Republics in eastern Ukraine.
