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Battle at Airport in Eastern Ukraine Poses Challenge for New President
Mashable ^ | 5-27-2014 | Christopher Miller/3

Posted on 05/26/2014 9:07:10 AM PDT by tcrlaf

Ukraine government forces launched an aggressive assault Monday on pro-Russian separatists who had earlier seized a terminal building in the Donetsk airport.

The government forces used airstrikes and helicopters to battle the insurgents, not long after President-elect Petro Peroshenko vowed to take a tougher approach to the armed militants who have seized government buildings in a succession of cities in the Russian-speaking eastern part of the nation.

See also: Ukraine's New President: Can a Candy King Lead a Post-Revolutionary Nation?

The seizure of the airport posed the first immediate challenge to Poroshenko, coming only a day after his overwhelming victory at the polls. Judging by his words and the government's military response at the Donetsk airport, he intends to take a more aggressive tack against the pro-Russian fighters.

“I am not going to hold any dialogues with the criminals. You don’t talk to terrorists,” he said at a press conference on Monday. “The anti-terrorist operation will not and cannot last for months, it will last just for hours.”

(Excerpt) Read more at mashable.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: airport; civilwar; donetsk; ukraine
A big fight has been going on now for about 3 hours.

Right now, heavy storms and heavy rain have stopped air Ops, and according to a Sedish Journo on Twitter, "several hundred Rus" are gathering in the woods around the airport, readying for a night attack.

Various reports of one or two Helicopters destroyed.

Various pics on Twitter from Western Journos of the fighting and air attacks, and at least two civilians have been killed, as well as very recent reports that a group of Journos was strafed by a helicopter.

1 posted on 05/26/2014 9:07:10 AM PDT by tcrlaf
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To: tcrlaf
"several hundred Rus"

Who's side is that again?

2 posted on 05/26/2014 9:19:45 AM PDT by mac_truck ( Aide toi et dieu t aidera)
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To: tcrlaf

Update from RT:

Donetsk self-defense forces claim on Twitter to have regained control over the international airport in the eastern city after Ukrainian troops launched a military operation there, deploying fighter jets and helicopters.

“The people’s army has the airport in Donetsk back under control. We are rooting out the remaining Kiev’s remaining troops. Airstrikes have stopped for now,” said the tweet from the self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Donetsk.

However, other reports on Twitter suggest the shooting still goes on.

Earlier, RT’s Maria Finoshina reported from Donetsk that Ukrainian fighter jets and helicopters were again unleashed at the armed self-defense occupying the airport. The second stage of Kiev’s “counter-terror operation” came amid reported negotiations between rebels and the Ukrainian forces at the scene.

“The Ukrainian occupiers are conducting missile and bomb strikes on Donetsk International Airport. They are deploying military aircraft,” self-defense forces said on Twitter amid the intense fighting.

“I have heard at least three blasts. Helicopters are circling over the city and military jets can be heard flying by,” witnesses told local daily Ostrov.


3 posted on 05/26/2014 9:31:05 AM PDT by tcrlaf (Q)
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To: tcrlaf

Just when you think you’re the biggest and baddest, someone drops a 500 lb bomb on your head. When the vipers hole up in a nest (building), one strike takes out all of them. Ukraine is well on the way of Darwinizing many of the criminals that decided open extortion was a terrific new line of work.

Between ridding the country of criminals and the alcoholics that went for the easy buck, Ukraine will be much better off. Let the eradication continue until Putler and his minions can’t get anyone in Ukraine to answer the phone.


4 posted on 05/26/2014 2:03:01 PM PDT by meatloaf (Impeach Obama. That's my New Year's resolution.)
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To: meatloaf

Just for tcr-who posts everything russian slanted ..

The militants who seized the Donetsk Sergey Prokofiev International Airport have been almost completely destroyed, reports Ukrainska Pravda, citing a report by the press officer of the Armed Forces Oleksiy Dmytrashkovskyy on the Donetsk City website, Monday, May 26.

“The militants who were in the terminal have been almost completely destroyed,” Dmytrashkovskyy said. He noted that on May 26, during the military operation, militants repeatedly appealed to the Antiterrorist Operation (ATO) leadership ” with requests for negotiations.”

“Especially ‘Abver’ ( Serhiy Zdrylyuk, the right hand of Igor Girkin, AKA ‘Strelok’) made the appeal several times and tried to reach an agreement on rescue and exit from Donetsk,” Dmytrashkovskyy said.

He announced that so far there is no confirmed data on losses among the ATO forces. He also reported that, according to the militants themselves, more than 150 militants were killed and 300 wounded during the military operation

However, accurate data on the numbers killed and wounded will be available Tuesday, May 27, because the investigators will inspect the site then,” Dmytrashkovskyy said. He confirmed that the Donetsk airport is now under the control of Ukrainian security forces.

“If they (the militants) try to seize it again, they will receive the same bitter pill as today,” he concluded.

At the same time, the head of the ATO Media Center Vladyslav Selesnyov stated in his press release that an ultimatum had been issued to the militants that those who lay down their arms will be guaranteed safety. After the terrorists rejected these conditions, the operation to neutralize them began......................

Source: http://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2014/05/27/7026875/


5 posted on 05/26/2014 11:23:00 PM PDT by hubel458
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To: meatloaf

sounds good!


6 posted on 05/26/2014 11:28:15 PM PDT by fabian (" And a new day will dawn for those who stand long, and the forests will echo in laughter")
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