International News
Ukraine's President, Petro Poroshenko has vowed to punish the "bandits" who shot down a military helicopter as the government's efforts to rein in separatists continue.
"The deaths of the military troops in Slovyansk are pain our whole nation is feeling," Poroshenko posted on his Facebook page Thursday night
"While mourning with rest of the Ukraine, I give my condolences to the families and loved ones of the fallen heroes. Crimes of the bandits will not be left unpunished."
Rebels of Slovyansk, in the Donetsk region, accepted responsibility for destroying the helicopter, a speaker for the separatists said. A dozen people died, authorities said, including a general.
Smoke rises from a downed Ukrainian army helicopter outside Slovyansk on Thursday.
The separatist that has gripped Ukraine in recent weeks has been centered in the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Mikhail Koval said on Friday that the military would continue its "anti-terrorism" operation until the east has been fully stabilized.
"We will work until this region starts living and functioning normally, and the people there feel safe," Koval said.
International monitors sent by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, at the invitation of Ukraine, have been surveying the situation on the ground but they appear increasingly at risk of being targeted by terrorist.
Four are said to be in the hands of pro-Russian separatists in Slovyansk, having gone missing Monday.
And Friday, the OSCE said it had also lost contact with some members of its Luhansk-based team as of the previous evening after armed men stopped them.
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"The deaths of the military troops in Slovyansk are pain our whole nation is feeling," Poroshenko posted on his Facebook page Thursday night
"While mourning with rest of the Ukraine, I give my condolences to the families and loved ones of the fallen heroes. Crimes of the bandits will not be left unpunished."
Rebels of Slovyansk, in the Donetsk region, accepted responsibility for destroying the helicopter, a speaker for the separatists said. A dozen people died, authorities said, including a general.
Smoke rises from a downed Ukrainian army helicopter outside Slovyansk on Thursday.
The separatist that has gripped Ukraine in recent weeks has been centered in the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Mikhail Koval said on Friday that the military would continue its "anti-terrorism" operation until the east has been fully stabilized.
"We will work until this region starts living and functioning normally, and the people there feel safe," Koval said.
International monitors sent by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, at the invitation of Ukraine, have been surveying the situation on the ground but they appear increasingly at risk of being targeted by terrorist.
Four are said to be in the hands of pro-Russian separatists in Slovyansk, having gone missing Monday.
And Friday, the OSCE said it had also lost contact with some members of its Luhansk-based team as of the previous evening after armed men stopped them.
Link