Ukraine: Many insurgents killed in Slovyansk
By PETER LEONARD 25 minutes ago
The
Kremlin said Kiev's military move against the insurgents "destroyed"
the two-week-old Geneva agreement on cooling Ukraine's crisis. President
Barack Obama said it was obvious to everyone now that the pro-Russia
militants were not peaceful protesters and the U.N. Security Council
held an emergency session in Ukraine at Russia's request.
Fighting
broke out around dawn near Slovyansk, a city 160 kilometers (100 miles)
from the Russian border that has become the focus of the armed
insurgency. Two helicopter crew members were killed in the crashes, both
sides said, and the insurgents reported one member killed.
Acting
President Oleksandr Turchynov later said two Ukrainian soldiers were
killed and seven wounded in Friday's clashes and the insurgents suffered
significant losses, including many killed or injured. It was not clear
if the two referred to the helicopter crew.
"Our security forces are fighting mercenaries of foreign states, terrorists and criminals," he said in a statement
By early evening, Turchynov said the army controlled all of the checkpoints around Slovyansk, a city of 125,000 people.
One
of the helicopters was hit by a surface-to-air missile, the Ukrainian
Security Service said, calling it a sophisticated weapon that undercut
Russia's claims the city was simply under the control of armed locals.
The agency said its forces were fighting "highly skilled foreign
military men" in Slovyansk.
The
Russian state television channel Rossia 24 showed one man they said was
a wounded helicopter pilot reportedly being helped by pro-Russia
forces.
Central Slovyansk
still remained in the hands of pro-Russia gunmen, according to AP
journalists in the city. Several foreign news crews trying to cover the
fighting were detained for several hours Friday before being released.
A
clash also broke out late Friday between pro-Russians and government
supporters in Odessa, a Black Sea coast port some 550 kilometers (330
miles) from the turmoil in the east. Police said one person died from
gunshot fire and other was wounded. Until now, Odessa had remained
largely untroubled since the February toppling of pro-Russia President
Viktor Yanukovych, which ignited tensions in the east.
Turchynov
admitted earlier this week that the central government had lost control
of the east, and said some government troops and police there were
"either helping or cooperating with terrorist organizations." He said
Ukrainian forces were working to prevent the unrest from spreading to
central areas like Odessa.
In
Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman said the Ukrainian
offensive "effectively destroyed the last hope for the implementation
of the Geneva agreements" that aimed to defuse the crisis. But Dmitry
Peskov said Russia "continues to undertake consistent efforts on
de-escalation."
Putin had
warned Ukraine not to move against the insurgents and said it should
withdraw its military from the volatile eastern and southern regions.
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