RIA Novosti
May 27, 2014
Nearly 100 Killed in Monday’s Donetsk Hostilities – Federalists
DONETSK: Over 50 members of local self-defense forces and nearly the same number of civilians were killed in clashes on Monday with pro-Kiev troops in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk, the prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic said Tuesday.
“We have lost more than 50 militiamen. A lot of people were injured when the Ukrainian army attacked two Kamaz [trucks] transporting the injured from the area of clashes near the airport. At least 15 people died then,” Alexander Borodai told journalists who gathered outside a city morgue.
On Monday, Donetsk was targeted by a special operation of pro-Kiev forces. After a battle at the Donetsk airport, the self-defense forces retreated after having been bombed by Ukrainian aircraft. National Guard units of the Kiev regime began moving towards the center of the city, but federalists blocked their path with vehicles, and shooting broke out.
“Two of our Kamaz vehicles were shot both from the air, from helicopters and from an ambush on the ground. The shooting of the injured contradicts all the international conventions,” Borodai said.
Most of the federalists were killed when Ukrainian troops deployed helicopters and fighter aircraft against them, he added.
About 50 civilians died when Ukrainian troops opened fire at self-defense forces who were retreating through residential districts.
Several dozen corpses were shown to the journalists. Most victims among the self-defense activists were local citizens. No Russian citizens were among them, he said.
There were also casualties among the Ukrainian troops, Borodai said.
The Ukrainian army is now controlling only the airport. All roadblocks approaching the city are under the control of the self-defense forces.
The deadly clashes came after Sunday’s presidential vote in the country amid a large-scale military operation launched by the new Kiev authorities to crack down on protesters refusing to recognize the legitimacy of the government.
After claiming victory in the election, Poroshenko said the special operation in eastern Ukraine should continue and become more effective. On Monday, Poroshenko said he was ready to sit down at the negotiating table with all people of the turbulent Donetsk and Luhansk regions, but added illegal armed forces must lay down their weapons.
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Itar-Tass
May 27, 2014
Shooting breaks out near Donetsk airport, fighter planes fly over
DONETSK: Automatic fire has broken out again near the Donetsk airport, with helicopter gunships and fight planes flying over, a militia representative told ITAR-TASS. Helicopters opened fire at militia units’ ground positions, according to preliminary reports.
Jets have returned to the air space over Donetsk on Tuesday, but pilots have not been conducting any operations yet, ITAR-TASS reported from the scene.
Ukraine’s law-enforcers have blocked all exits from Donetsk and do not even let passenger buses leave the area of military operation, a militia representative told ITAR-TASS.
“The only road out of the city is towards the settlement of Makeyevka, but you’ll need detours to get there anyway,” he said.
Meanwhile, the city has scrambled to evacuate schools and all the housing and public utilities departments have been ordered to prepare bomb shelters in case of active fighting and bombings.
The press service of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic said that the Kiev authorities had resumed the punitive operation in the Donetsk territory at 12.00 pm local time on Tuesday. The population had been warned beforehand that they might leave the Donetsk territory, but the people are reluctant to leave their homes.
Armed clashes in the area of Donetsk Sergey Prokofiev International Airport began on Monday morning. The Ukrainian law enforcers have used combat aircraft, including jets and helicopters, in the rebel territory. The fighting in the area of the airport continued throughout Monday and last night.
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Interfax
May 27, 2014
Slovyansk militia claims 3 were killed as projectiles hit apartment building (Part 2)
DONETSK: Fierce armed clashes between the Ukrainian Armed Forces and local militiamen took place in the city of Slovyansk and nearby villages last night, a spokesman for the local militia headquarters told Interfax.
“Three people were killed and scores were injured when two projectiles hit a section of a nine-storey apartment building last night. The National Guard launched strikes against us from the Severny neighborhood and the village of Semenivka. There have been casualties and injuries on our side. Their exact numbers are not yet known,” the spokesman said.
A Slovyansk diocese, for its part, said in a press release that a woman died as a result of a mine explosion near the Church of the Reigning Icon of the Mother of God in the Artem neighborhood of Slovyansk.
The force of the blast blew out several windows of the church and damaged the building facade and the fence. The mine landed just ten meters from the church, which was empty of worshippers at that time, it said.
“Strikes targeting this part of the city started at around 7:30 p.m. Five mines were launched in the direction of the Artem neighborhood, damaging residential buildings and a dormitory, where students were staying. Another mine damaged an apartment building located 200 meters from the church. The information available suggests that two people, a man and a woman, were killed in this building,” according to the press release.
Artem is Slovyansk’s most densely populated neighborhood, where approximately 40,000 people live.
The Church of the Reigning Icon of the Mother of God is the center of the district’s spiritual life. It took local residents three years to build it. Parents and their children frequently walk near the church when no religious services are taking place inside it.
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Itar-Tass
May 27, 2014
Leader of Sloviansk’s volunteer force suggests evacuating people
SLOVIANSK: Vyacheslav Ponomaryov, the leader of Sloviansk volunteer units, has suggested evacuating everybody who wishes to leave the city.
“We suggest preparing children and adults who wish to leave the city for evacuation. We have everything ready to evacuate them. I believe that today we will decide where they can go,” Ponomaryov said at a meeting at the administration of the self-rpoclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic. According to him, Sloviansk’s civilian population could be resettled to other parts of the republic, including Svyatogorsk and Brusino.
Meanwhile, Denis Pushilin, chairman of the presidium of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, told ITAR-TASS that casualties from Ukraine’s military operation that resumed on Monday could reach a hundred people, including 20 to 50 civilians.
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