KRAMATORSK,
May 15. /ITAR-TASS/. Ukrainian military “simulated armed clashes”
against a self-defense group on the outskirts of the city of Kramatorsk
in the Donetsk region, a representative of voluntary guard of the
self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic told ITAR-TASS on Thursday.
“A
ten-vehicle-strong armored column under the cover of six helicopters
entered the township of Solntsevo” and the entry was followed by brisk
fire involving large-caliber automatic weapons,” he said.
The
man who witnessed the events said “they were shooting at nowhere, in the
sky and into the open field as there aren't any woods nearby.” Upon
hearing the shooting, locals “took shelter in cellars.”
“There were no self-defense fighters in this area, to say nothing of bases,” he said.
Read More Here
.....
Ukrainian military storm Kramatorsk, 1 dead, 9 injured
Published time: May 02, 2014 20:05
Edited time: May 03, 2014 03:58
The
Ukrainian army’s assault on Kramatorsk has finished, witnesses say,
adding that the military did not enter the town. Preliminary reports say
that one self-defense activist was killed and nine were injured.
It is unclear whether there are any casualties on the army’s side.
Meanwhile
coup-appointed interior minister Arsen Avakov has said on his Facebook
page that Kiev is not planning to stop the special military operation in
Kramatorsk, adding that the military assault will continue at sunrise.
He added that the military took control of a TV tower in Kramatorsk
overnight.
“The military attacked the barricade on the road to Yasnogorka (town adjacent to Kramatorsk),” an eye-witness in Kramatorsk told RT when the assault started late on Friday. “
The
lights have been turned off on the nearby street. Shots are being heard
across the city, signal rockets light up the sky from time to time.
People are saying the Ukrainian army is shooting at everything that
moves right now.”
Medics told RIA Novosti that 10 people
sustained wounds, one of whom died in hospital. At least one of the
injured is a woman. It was earlier reported that dozens had been killed
or injured.
Meanwhile, the army has resumed its special operation
in Slavyansk on Friday evening. The headquarters of the people’s
self-defense is under snipers’ fire, according to Itar-Tass. There are
reports of injuries among protesters.
Read More and Watch Video Here
.....
Three injured as Ukrainian military take control of Kramatorsk military airfield in Donetsk Oblast
The poster reads "Don't shoot the citizens of Kramatorsk."
© Anastasia Vlasova
KRAMATORSK, Ukraine
-- For 30-year old Oleksiy, April 15 wasn't a good day. He was one of
300 or so Russian-backed militants from Kramatorsk who attempted to take
over the Ukrainian military airfield in Donetsk Oblast's Kramatorsk.
But
Ukraine's army repelled them, in one of the first -- and Ukrainians
hope not the last -- battlefield victories since April 6, when
Kremlin-supported and heavily armed insurgents started taking over key
government buildings and installations throughout Ukraine's most
populous oblast.
But contrary to Russian media reports that 11
people were killed, the Ukrainian military operation left only three
wounded -- including Oleksiy, who refused to give his full name. He was
lucky to get away with a grazed hip when Ukrainian officers shot him.
Two others weren't so lucky and were hospitalized with more serious
gunshot wounds. They are expected to live, however.
"Our guys only
had three machine guns with them, and they weren't the first to shoot.
The soldiers started shooting at us when we just tried to enter the
base," said Oleksiy, who sounded surprised that he couldn't enter a
Ukrainian military base with a machine gun. His side got off some
gunshots, but all missed their targets.
However, the crowd was
ready for more violent attacks: They prepared dozens of Molotov
cocktails, but never used them -- just left them there, near the
airfield gates.
The military airfield near Kramatorsk, a city of some 250,000 people, has been out of use for years.
However,
when pro-Russian separatist protests escalated in Donetsk Oblast over
the weekend, the old airfield sparkled suspicion among the local
protesters. They expected the Ukrainian army to put it to use to bring
troops to suppress the uprising, so they kept watch over it since April
12 and tried to gain entry on April 15 -- which turned out to be a poor
decision.
Read More Here
.....
A helicopter seen in the background of a UN flag (archive)
© EPA/MAZEN MAHDI
ST.
PETERSBURG, May 15. /ITAR-TASS/. A response to Ukraine’s use of UN
symbols on helicopter gunships which Ukrainian military forces use in a
punitive operation near the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk is a
matter of the international organization’s secretariat, Russian Deputy
Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov told reporters on Thursday.
Read More Here
.....
She
recalled that 300 US instructors from the 173rd US airborne brigade had
trained three battalions - 780 people - for Ukraine’s National Guard in
a period from April to November. "It is noteworthy that the training
completed at a time when the situation on the line of contact in Donbas
started getting worse and the newly trained people were apparently sent
there," Zakharova said.
