Russian media report that a "camp" set up early this morning by Ukrainian authorities near the Pletenivka checkpoint in the Kharkiv region -- purportedly in connection with the Russian aid convoy -- was dismantled and vehicles and personnel were leaving the area.
The United Nations rights office says more than 60 people a day have been killed or wounded in eastern Ukraine since mid-April, pushing the list of injured to nearly 5,000 people, Reuters reports.
Reuters quotes a "source" as saying EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton is prepared to convene a special foreign ministers' meeting as early as this week on Ukraine, Iraq.
And Ukrainian lawmakers have taken a further step toward punitive measures against Russia, passing unanimously with 65 abstentions the first reading of a bill -- whose outlines were presented last week by Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk -- to level sanctions against Russian companies and individuals, agencies report. A final reading is expected tomorrow.
Here's more from our newsroom:
Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk has championed the bill, saying that it enables Kyiv to block energy deliveries and air transit through its territory.
Yatsenyuk has threatened to blacklist 172 officials and 65 entities from Russia and other unspecified countries.
However, any sanctions would need approval by Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council.
The European Union has warned that Ukraine should not halt transit flows of Russian gas.
About half of the EU's gas imports from Russia run through Ukraine.
Russian politicians said on August 12 that Moscow would retaliate in response to any sanctions.
Based on reporting by Reuters and dpa
From our newsroom:
Russian investigators have launched a probe into the fate of a Russian journalist who disappeared in eastern Ukraine last week.
Andrei Stenin was working in Ukraine as a photographer for Russia's state-owned media conglomerate Rossiya Segodnya, also known as RT. He has not been heard from since August 5.
Anton Herashchenko, an adviser at Ukraine's Interior Ministry, said Stenin was likely arrested by Ukrainian security services for "aiding and glorifying terrorists."
The International Federation of Journalists and the New-York based Committee to Protect Journalists have voiced concern over Stenin's disappearance.
Russia's Foreign Ministry said on August 12 that Stenin "could be a victim of a malicious attack" and demanded that Kyiv "puts in all effort" to find and liberate him.
Based on reporting by AFP and ITAR-TASS
Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov posted a defiant message on Facebook in the past half an hour:
"No Putin 'convoy' will pass through the territory of the Kharkiv region. No cynical provocation by an aggressor is allowed on our territory.
"As far as I'm concerned, Putin can pour these 30 tons of salt as 'humanitarian aid' on his...
Via @ShaunWalker7.