- Title: UKRAINE: Armed pro-Russian rebels man checkpoint near Donetsk airport
- Date: 29th May 2014
- Summary: DONETSK, UKRAINE (MAY 29, 2014) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF SKYLINE OVER DONETSK AIRPORT VARIOUS OF PILES OF SAND AND CRASHED TRUCK AT CHECKPOINT ON THE ROAD TO THE AIRPORT CAR DRIVING THROUGH CHECKPOINT MAN IN RELIGIOUS CLOTHING OPENING CAR, MAN INSPECTING VARIOUS OF MASKED MAN WITH GUN STANDING BY CAR DRIVING THROUGH CHECKPOINT VARIOUS OF MAN KEEPING WATCH THROUGH SANDBAGS PLACED ON TRUCK (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) 'RUSSIAN ORTHODOX ARMY' SEPARATIST, 'SERGEI THE GREEK', SAYING: "There is a checkpoint of the Russian Orthodox Army at the entrance to the Kiev district (of Donetsk), which is protecting the city from fascist forces - the National Guard and Right Sector - from entering." FLAG FLUTTERING IN THE WIND CAR PASSING THROUGH CHECKPOINT VARIOUS OF CRASHED TRUCK
- Embargoed: 13th June 2014 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Ukraine
- Country: Ukraine
- Topics: Conflict,General,Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA8DTHM3AL9TMXC8329VV9ND9P
- Story Text: Armed pro-Russian separatists calling themselves the "Russian Orthodox Army" on Thursday (May 29) stopped and inspected cars on the roadway from the Donetsk airport to the city.
The men stood near a damaged truck - evidence from two days before when rebels clashed with Ukrainian forces over control of the airport.
The assault launched on Monday (May 26) was the first time Kiev has unleashed its full military force against the fighters after weeks of restraint.
About 50 rebels were killed in the assault.
A separatist explained what he and his men were trying to accomplish.
"There is a checkpoint of the Russian Orthodox Army at the entrance to the Kiev district (of Donetsk), which is protecting the city from fascist forces - the National Guard and Right Sector - from entering," said a man who identified himself as "Sergei the Greek."
Ukraine's new president Petro Poroshenko, a billionaire confectionary magnate who became the first Ukrainian since 1991 to win the presidency outright in a single round of voting, marked his clear victory in Sunday's (May 25) election by calling for a swift and effective offensive to crush the eastern rebellions.
The separatist authorities say those who died on Monday and Tuesday included a truckload of wounded fighters blasted apart as they were driven away from the battlefield. The government said it suffered no losses in the operation, when its aircraft strafed the airport and paratroops landed to reclaim it.
At Donetsk's Kalinin morgue, where the dead from the violence were taken, 30 coffins were laid out in rows on Thursday. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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