The U.S. ambassador to Kyiv expresses his dismay at the vandalism of a memorial commemorating one of the most notorious massacres of Ukrainian Jews in Kyiv during WWII, ahead of the anniversary of he atrocity on September 29.
Disgusted by last night's desecration of the Babi Yar memorial. We all must condemn it in strongest terms. http://t.co/ILsOffkF3l
— Geoffrey Pyatt (@GeoffPyatt) September 24, 2014
Transnistrian bigwig Antyufeyev removed as PM of the Donetsk People's Republic, which now has a "supreme court." http://t.co/W38T9JfEFp
— max seddon (@maxseddon) September 24, 2014
Donate to Ukraine's antiseparatist security operations and get a tax break, according to new legislation.
Antyufeyev has been "Donetsk People's Republic first deputy chairman" and will be replaced by Ravil Havikov, says the rebel leadership.
"Our Crimea!"
The Ukrainian National Security Service says it detained saboteurs and subsersives at a "safe house in Kharkiv...controlled by Russian security services," RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports.
From our newsroom:
Kyiv says there was sporadic fighting between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists despite the cease-fire agreement.
Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council also says eight soldiers were wounded over the past 24 hours.
The council spokesman Andriy Lysenko claims that rebels kept provoking government troops into returning fire.
A residential building in the rebel-held city of Donetsk was reportedly damaged by shelling. Rebels are quoted as saying two people were killed in the attack. The claim could not be independently confirmed.
The cease-fire has been in force since September 5 and appears to be holding despite repeated violations.
NATO spokesman Jay Janzen said on September 24 that the alliance has observed a significant withdrawal of Russian forces from inside Ukraine, but many Russian troops remain stationed near the border.
Based on reporting by AP, dpa, Reuters, and Interfax