Nine soldiers killed in Ukraine attacks Nine soldiers were killed overnight in attacks on a checkpoint and a military convoy, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry said Thursday. An armored vehicle near Volnovaha in Donetsk region was hit by rocket-propelled grenades and mortars, which caused ammunition on board to ignite, the ministry said. A second attack hit a convoy of vehicles in Rubizhne in the Luhansk region, the ministry said. It added that “terrorists” blocked a bridge with “civilian provocateurs” and then opened fire using the people as human shields. No independent confirmation of the claims or response from separatist forces in eastern Ukraine was immediately available. Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk called for an immediate emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council following the reported violence, which comes as the interim government in Kiev prepares to hold presidential elections Sunday. “We will provide evidence that it is Russia trying to escalate the conflict, attempts to seize Ukrainian state border checkpoints and scuttle the presidential election,” he was quoted as saying by his office. Tensions remain high in Donetsk and Luhansk, where pro-Russia separatists staged a referendum on independence this month and control key public buildings in a number of towns and cities. Ukraine’s Central Election Commission said Wednesday that 13 out of 34 local election commissions in Luhansk and Donetsk were “blocked,” or under the control of militia, the official Ukrinform news agency reported.
Posted on: Thu, 22 May 2014 15:10:49 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015