Guns and fighters seep through Ukraine's porous Russian border

• Alec Luhn in Donetsk
• theguardian.com, Saturday 31 May 2014 11.50 EDT

Pro-Russian fighters during the battle for Donetsk airport in Ukraine. Photograph: Sazonchik Konstantin/Corbis

In late April, 65 Russian men in groups of five to 10 crossed the border with Ukraine on foot, telling border guards they were going to visit relatives.

It wasn't a fond babushka who picked them up at the border, however, but rather pro-Russian rebels from the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic in eastern Ukraine. They bussed the Russian fighters to the regional capital, where they took up arms and last week engaged in the fiercest combat yet against forces loyal to Kiev.

"I was watching events in Odessa and was very upset about what was going on," said one of the Russian fighters, who would give only his wartime nickname "Varan" or "Monitor Lizard". Clashes between pro-Ukrainian and pro-Russian protesters in that city last month left more than 40 people dead. "I called up the military enlistment office and asked what I could do. They said people were gathering in Rostov and it may be possible to go to Ukraine. It's not official; they whispered it in my ear, so to speak."

The Russian fighters – including veterans of the military, intelligence services and riot police – formed the core of a new unit called the Vostok Battalion, which took a lead role in the bloody battle for the Donetsk airport last week, in which 33 Russian citizens were killed.

The story of how Varan and his brethren simply walked into the country highlights the problem that Ukraine has had in keeping out the growing number of Russians reinforcing local rebels in the two-month-old uprising in Luhansk and Donetsk regions. Recently, Ukrainian forces have reportedly captured vehicles carrying weapons from Russia, while others have got through, hinting at the porous nature of the 1,400-mile border between the two countries.

Speaking on national television on Friday, Anton Geraschenko, a top aide to Ukrainian interior minister Arsen Avakov, said establishing greater control of the border will be key to Kiev's "anti-terrorist operation" against pro-Russian rebels in the east.

"Closing the border is becoming the number one issue today," Geraschenko said. "All 23 years that Ukraine has been independent, our border with Russia has been fairly porous. We don't have exclusion zones, we don't have sufficient border defences."

On Friday, pro-Russian forces attempted to storm a border post near Dyakovo in Luhansk region from the Ukrainian side, the border service said, marking the latest in a string of similar clashes. Russian Cossacks who entered Ukraine last month reportedly took part in the assault. On Thursday night, there was a rebel attack on another border post further east.

Earlier last week, the border service said a column of 40 trucks and cars attempted to cross the border from Russia in the early hours of the morning, and many of them made it in during the ensuing firefight, in which one Russian was killed. Border guards reportedly captured a car and two minibuses, confiscating machine guns, grenade launchers, sniper rifles and 84 boxes of live ammunition.

"Our border, especially in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, has become a front line that various 'terrorists' are trying to break through," border service head Mykola Lytvyn told journalists in Kiev on Wednesday. "Daily fighting with 'terrorists' and groups of criminals near the Ukrainian and Russian border has become our routine reality."

A weekend visit by the Observer to border crossings near the town of Uspenka in Donetsk region, where military forces reportedly repelled a rebel attack on 20 May, did find that border guards were delaying and checking vehicles coming from Russia. Paratroopers from a brigade based in the nearby Dnepropetrovsk region were opening boots at checkpoints on main roads leading from the border.

The commander of the main checkpoint said the military had been monitoring all traffic for the past three weeks, but added that the interior ministry was not doing its part to control the border region. Many police officers in restive cities in the east have supported the rebels.

"It doesn't do anything. We haven't seen a single police officer. The interior ministry has eliminated itself," he said.

But the regular traffic across the border of Russians and Ukrainians, many of whom have relatives on the other side, presents a trickier problem. Despite reports in April that Ukrainian authorities had barred Russian men aged 16 to 60 from entering the country, border service representatives denied there was such a restriction and said that the border was functioning under the same rules as before. Russian and Ukrainian citizens can cross without a visa.

The border runs directly between rustic one-storey homes in the tiny village of Stepne in the Donetsk region, where surveys show a majority of locals support more independence from Kiev.

Several locals told the Observer they would like to join Russia. At a tiny border service booth, Vladimir Uvorvikhvost, a pensioner from the nearby town of Amrosivka who was originally born in Russia, was waiting for his daughter and son-in-law to return from visiting relatives in the Russian city of Taganrog.

"Russia is our saviour. We won't go anywhere without Russia," Uvorvikhvost said.

Sergei, a taxi driver in Amrosivka who declined to provide his last name, said the border was well-patrolled now, but said not all roads into Russia had border posts. "You could bring in one machine gun, but no more than that. One you could take apart and hide in your underwear, as we say," he said.

The flow of Russian fighters is not likely to decrease any time soon, if Varan's experience is any indication. Many others in his homeland feel the same "outburst of patriotism" that he did, Varan said.

"Friends call me and ask me how it is here," he said. "They want to come too."

Дмитрий Спивак Никите Михалкову: "Бандерлоги - это вы"!

Хорошо сказано, без комментариев

Shaken by Ukraine’s turmoil, Kiev Jews form self-defense force

KIEV, Ukraine (JTA) — At an empty Chabad school near the banks of the Dnieper River here in Ukraine’s capital city, six uniformed Jews with handguns and bulletproof vests are practicing urban warfare.

Leading the May 21 training is a brawny man who at irregular intervals barks Hebrew-language commands at the men to test their drilled responses to different scenarios, including “ma’atzor” (firearm malfunction) and “mekhabel” (terrorist).

The men, who belong to Kiev’s newly formed Jewish Self-Defense Force, all have some combat skills from the Israeli or Ukrainian armies or background in martial arts, but they are clearly rusty. Living in a country that had been at peace since World War II, they hadn’t expected to have to use their skills to defend their local Jewish community.

But that changed with the recent turmoil in the country. Amid the months of upheaval, there have been scattered attempts to torch synagogues, as well as assaults on Jews. Two rabbis were stabbed near Kiev’s Great Choral Synagogue, one in January and the second in March.

Such incidents led to the creation and deployment of the self-defense force around some of Kiev’s Jewish institutions ahead of the country’s May 25 elections.

“We were naïve, I guess. We had thought this conflict would not affect the Jewish community, but now we know we are a target,” said Tzvi Arieli, the group’s founder and trainer in techniques he mastered in the Israel Defense Forces. “Honestly, we should have formed this force months ago.”

Arieli and his team are worried that their community has become a pawn in the fight that pro-Russian separatists have waged against the Ukrainian government since the ouster of former president Viktor Yanukovych in February.

“The separatists are on a mission to portray the Ukrainians as anti-Semites and to do that they are targeting the Jewish community,” said Gedaliah, another prominent member of the eight-man Jewish force who requested that only his first name be used. “Failing that, they’d love to illustrate how the Ukrainian government is helpless to protect the country’s Jews and harm its legitimacy.”

But that helplessness is real enough, according to Gedaliah.

“The message we got from meetings with high-level officials is that however much they’d like to protect potential Jewish targets, they are overstretched, understaffed and simply not up to the task,” he said. “They basically told us to take steps to defend ourselves.”

Rabbi Yaakov Dov Bleich, a chief rabbi of Ukraine who leads the Great Choral Synagogue, several weeks ago gave the green light to the formation of the self-defense unit under Arieli’s command.

The unit, its members say, has the backing of Ukrainian police.

“We have a direct line to police top brass in case any of our members are detained by police,” Arieli said.

The men are licensed to carry their own personal handguns for self-defense purposes. They also have five bulletproof vests that Arieli, a soft-spoken former emissary to Kiev of the Bnei Akiva Zionist youth movement, obtained from donors in Israel. The team also has baseball bats to wield as clubs but no helmets or proper first-aid kits.

Arieli is currently working to raise additional funds on Facebook to buy gear for new members seeking to join.

At the schoolyard, the men practice running for cover while their comrades fire imaginary shots at an abstract enemy, shouting “bam, bam, bam” while pulling the triggers of their empty firearms.

They are all friends in their 20s to 40s who know each other well, but there is little joking around. They go over the moves again and again, taking care to hug walls as they turn corners with their firearms extended until they secure the entire space.

Staggering under the weight of the 40-pound ceramic vest, Gedaliah shook his head and said, “This is going to take some getting used to.”

On election day, the men plan to deploy around the Great Choral Synagogue and another undisclosed Jewish institution in the city, which has dozens of Jewish institutions.

“We can cover a fraction of the potential targets and always be ready to race to wherever we are needed,” said Meir, a former anti-aircraft soldier in the Ukrainian army. “But we can’t secure all the Jewish institutions in Kiev.”

May in Ukraine

May 18 – 2191 international observers will be monitoring presidential elections in Ukraine on May 25th…

May 18 – During the night of May 18th, a motor convoy led by the terrorists is preparing to transport a special load from Ukraine to Russia. “In particular, bodies of terrorists, killed during the fights with Ukrainian soldiers will be transported. There are a few hundred bodies. According to our data, the motor convoy will cross the state border in Luhansk oblast”, said Dmytro Tymchuk, the leader of “Information resistance” group.

May 18 – Several insurgents were detained as a result of the anti-terrorist operation near Kramatorsk. Two of these people introduced themselves as Russian journalists, said Dmytro Tymchuk, the leader of “Information resistance” group.

May 18 – After Russia’s annexation of Crimea, over 7 thousand Crimean Tatars were forced to leave the peninsula due to “pressure from Russian invaders”.

May 18 – Militia officers and the officers of the Special Purpose Mobile Unitfrom Krasnodar were preventing the arrival of Crimean Tatars to Simferopol. Crimean Tatars planned to participate in the commemorative events marking the 70th anniversary of their deportation.

May 18 – During a commemorative event dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the deportation, Crimean Tatars spoke about the need to urgently restore their rights and stop any discrimination based on political, national and religious grounds. They also declared their request to return the historic names to those sites, which names were changed after the deportation of Crimean Tatars, to pass the laws guaranteeing Crimean Tatar representation within Crimean authorities as well as to recognize Kurultai ans Mejlis – representative authorities of Crimea’s autochton. Also Mejlis will press to annul the prohibition of entry to Crimea, which was issued to Mustafa Zhemilev, the deputy of the Supreme Council of Ukraine and the leader of Crimean Tatars.

May 18- After a commemorative event dedicated to the deportation of Crimean Tatars, communication has been lost with a journalist Osman Pashayev. On May 18th Osman Pashayev has streamed live from the commemorative events in Crimea. He was arrested by local illegal “authorities” of Crimea.

By annexing Crimea, Russia has carried out an act of aggression against Ukraine. Currently Russia is transferring terrorist and sabotage groups to Eastern Ukraine. Russia aims to prevent legitimate presidential elections from happening. Everyday life in Eastern Ukraine has turned into a continuous nightmare in the middle of Europe. Our country is being destroyed right before our eyes. We therefore take the courage to inform you about current events in Ukraine. This is just another point of view. We will do our best to remain objective.

May 19 – The mood of the residents of Donbas has changed dramatically. Today there are fewer and fewer of those who support the protesters… People are afraid to go out; they fear for the future of their businesses. This has changed the overall situation significantly. Previously, 3-5 thousand people were actively protesting, whereas right now there are far less of them, said the Head of Donetsk Regional State Administration Serhiy Taruta. According to Mr.Taruta “there were 10-15 thousand people protesting overall in all of Donetsk oblast. I am unable to say how many of them were armed with guns. Unfortunately, there are hundreds of them but thank God there are not tens of thousands of them. Therefore I would say that the situation is complicated, but not critical”, he said.

May 19 – Payments such as pensions and salaries allocated from the state budget will be suspended in cities of Slaviansk and Kramatorsk (Donetsk oblast) due to rampant behavior on behalf of pro-Russian terrorists, informed the Minister of Internal Affairs Arsen Avakov.

May 19 – As a result of a threat from machinegunners of a so called “People’s Republic of Donetsk”, a peace rally was cancelled in Mariupol. “A Peace March with no political slogans or flags was supposed to be held in Mariupol at 5 pm today. Thousands of people planned to participate, including approximately 30000 of our employees”, wrote Natalia Yemchenko, Director of Public Relations and Communications at System Capital Management (SCM), which is owned by an oligarch Rinat Akhmetov.

May 19 – In Kyiv, the officers of the Security Service of Ukraine apprehended eight members of a criminal group. It is suspected that they were preparing the acts of terrorism aiming to disrupt presidential elections in Ukraine on May 25th.

May 19 – Security Service of Ukraine prevented a terrorist attack in Odesa on May 18th – pro-Russian terrorists had planned to blow up a motor vehicle at Kulikovo Field (“Kulikovo Pole”) in Odesa at 2 pm on May 18th. At that point in time over fifteen hundred people would have been present at the scene. These people were pro-Russia oriented.

May 20 – Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev made it clear that Russia is unlikely to recognize the results of presidential elections in Ukraine. Russia cannot and doesn’t intent to guarantee the territorial integrity of Ukraine, as it never assumed such obligations, he said. “We are slowly but steadily moving towards the second Cold War”, concluded he in his interview with Bloomberg News Agency. Obviously this message was some sort of a threat to the US. And equally obvious is the fact that these are Putin’s words stated by Medvedev.

May 20 – In Artemivsk (Donetsk oblast) the terrorists have threatened to burn down one of the schools and hang its director if the building operates as a polling station for the presidential elections in Ukraine.

May 20 – As of Tuesday, 12 pm 11 premises of District Election Commissions out of 34 are blocked in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts by pro-Russian terrorists, informed Konstantin Khivrenko, Central Election Commission’s Press Secretary.

May 20 – One of the leaders of the terrorist organization “People’s Republic of Donetsk” Denys Pushylin has announced the beginning of nationalization in the region. This is terrorists’ interpretation of the pro-Ukrainian speech of the wealthiest businessman of Ukraine Rinat Akhmetov, who condemned “People’s Republic of Donetsk” as a terrorist organization.

May 20 – A protest rally initiated by the by civil society organisations has taken place in the city of Donetsk and in Donetsk oblast at 12 pm. The rally was against the destabilization of situation in Donbas, against the violence and chaos, banditry and looting by the activists of the so-called “People’s Republic of Donetsk”. The employees of local enterprises attended the strike, whereas car drivers supported the event by pressing car klaxons.

May 20 – Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine states that Russia has not withdrawn its troops from the Ukrainian borders, despite the statements of President Vladimir Putin.

May 20 – Security Service of Ukraine states that it has evidence proving the use of technologies aiming to psychologically impact the viewers by Russian media (so-called “25th frame” in particular). At SSU’s briefing, a video of “Russia-24″ news program about Odesa events (May 2nd) was demonstrated. Throughout the whole program, slightly visible words such as “arson right sector”, “people killed by banderovtsy”, “national guards are killers” were appearing in the corner of the screen.

Андрій Ілларіонов: Нищівна поразка Путіна в Україні

"Найголовніший результат українських президентських виборів – це не те, що президентом обраний П.Порошенко, - пише економіст Андрій Ілларіонов у блозі на сайті Радіо "Эхо Москвы". - І не те, що вперше українського президента обрано в першому турі.
І навіть не те, що Ю.Тимошенко зазнала серйозної поразки, що ставить під сумнів її шанси на подальшу участь у політичному житті України на перших ролях.
Найголовніший результат учорашніх президентських виборів – це формально-юридична смерть путінського міфу про т.з. «розкол» України на західно-центральную і південно-східну частини, на «западенців» і російськомовних, на «Бандерівщину» і «Новоросію».
Це похорони путінського плану щодо розділу України.Це остаточне завершення 20-річного періоду «українізації», важливого етапу на шляху вестернізації і європеїзації України, про які мова йшла тут.
Вперше за два десятиліття виборів у незалежній Україні глава держави обраний не голосами жителів Сходу України проти голосів жителів її Заходу і не голосами жителів Заходу проти голосів жителів її Сходу.
Уперше президент України обраний голосами всієї України, голосами жителів усіх великих українських макрорегіонів.Більш того, перші чотири кандидати в президенти України за кількістю отриманих ними голосів на нинішніх виборах (П.Порошенко, Ю.Тимошенко, О.Ляшко, А.Гриценко, незалежно від деталей їх програм і персональних особливостей) політично є Заходом і Центром України, не її Сходом і Півднем. За сумарною кількістю отриманих ними голосів (приблизно 83% – за даними екзит-полів) це означає абсолютну перемогу національного вибору українськими громадянами західного варіанту розвитку єдиної України. 
Кількість голосів, отриманих найбільш популярним кандидатом, якого можна розглядати як кандидата «Сходу» С.Тігіпка (4,8%), а також найбільш популярним путінським кандидатом М.Добкіним (2,1%) означає, що проекти В.Путіна щодо захоплення України, щодо встановлення контролю над Україною, щодо розділу України зазнали нищівної поразки.Іншими словами, проміжним підсумком десятимісячної путінської війни проти України – попри неодноразові заяви путінських пропагандистів про нібито його неймовірні «успіхи і перемоги» – став тотальний крах планів Путіна в Україні.Україна не стала бандерівскою.
Або антиросійською.
Україна, практично вся Україна, стала антипутінською.І орієнтованою на інтеграцію в західний, тобто в сучасний світ.

Op-Ed: Support Jews staying in Ukraine

(JTA) — At the end of “Fiddler on the Roof,” the classic musical celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, Tevye and his family flee their village of Anatevka for a better and safer life.

In reality, however, not everybody left.

Today, several hundred thousand Jews still live in Ukraine, where the fictional Anatevka was likely located. And despite headlines on mass evacuations, Ukraine’s ongoing political crisis and serious concerns about anti-Semitism, they are not leaving in great numbers.

Some might find that hard to fathom.

Ukraine, after all, has a long history of anti-Jewish acts and attitudes, economic turmoil, and was center stage to Holocaust atrocities. Add to that dim prospects for a quick solution to the protracted challenges facing the country and increasing need among the poorest elderly and families, and a future there seems bleak.

Yet two things are important to remember.

First, 2014 is not 1939. Jews in Ukraine and elsewhere today have the freedom to leave places that are dangerous or unfriendly to them; they can find safe haven in Israel or other countries around the world. Additionally, Jews have developed strong voices and grassroots community groups, working with their governments and fellow citizens to valiantly challenge acts of anti-Semitism and xenophobia.

Second, Jews throughout the region have deep ties to the societies in which they live. They have families and friends. They are leading politicians, artists, businessmen, journalists and contributors to Ukrainian society. They also have enthusiastically engaged in Jewish communities revived after the fall of the Soviet Union – replete with scores of Jewish community centers, synagogues, nursery schools, Jewish day schools, after-school programs and summer camps.

So what are we to do in the face of this phenomenon?

Primarily, we must respect the decision of Ukrainian Jews to stay at home or emigrate. Then we must do all we can to support those who choose to remain there and continue to live their lives. The global Jewish community, through a variety of philanthropic partners and institutions, has been at the forefront of these efforts.

Since the outbreak of violence in Ukraine, for example, our organizations have provided the neediest Jews with emergency aid, round-the-clock care and Jewish community connection through our network of Hesed social welfare centers that reach more than 1,000 locations around Ukraine. Other groups such as the Jewish Agency have done a stellar job of providing immigration options to Israel.

Ultimately the fate of the Jews of Ukraine is not an either/or proposition. Like many others in crisis zones in the world today, they will seek out what they consider to be the best opportunity or path for themselves.

And right now, the choice of the vast majority of Ukrainian Jews is to stay where they were born and raised.

That sentiment was voiced in the aftermath of unprecedented violence in the port city of Odessa amid rumors of a communitywide exodus. Tania Vorobyov of the city’s Beit Grand Jewish Community Center told reporters, “Reports about evacuation are baseless rumors. Jews in Odessa are worried about the violence like all other Odessans but have no special plans to leave as a community.”

This may be counterintuitive to the popular imagination, a la Tevye, which says Jews must flee Eastern Europe to find happiness and success.

Reality, however, often trumps our preconceptions.

In Eastern Ukraine, Torture Is New Weapon

by Claire Bigg

When he ripped down a separatist flag from the main government building in Novohradovka, his hometown in eastern Ukraine, Oleksandr Hurov knew he was in for trouble.

Retaliation was quick, and ruthless.

Two weeks later, the 36-year-old coalminer lies in a Kyiv hospital with a fractured jaw, a broken nose, a lacerated arm, and cracked ribs.

“They beat me nonstop,” he told RFE/RL. “I was lying on the ground; they kicked me and hit me on the head with a gun. One of them held my arm outstretched while another one jumped on it. I passed out from time to time, which was great because then I couldn’t feel the pain.”

Hurov says his assailants called him a “traitor” and tried to peel off the nationalistic tattoo on his shoulder – inscribed with the words “Glory to Ukraine, glory to the heroes” – using the jagged edges of a smashed light bulb.

Hurov’s grisly story is an increasingly familiar one in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists are accused of waging a campaign of abductions and torture as they seek to consolidate their grip on the region.

They have readily admitted to the hostage-takings, which have targeted local officials, pro-Ukraine activists, journalists, foreign monitors, aid workers, and generally all those deemed critical of the self-styled “People’s Republics” formed last month in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

And with the separatist movement getting more organized, the abductions appear to have taken on a systematic, methodical nature.

“I would not call these isolated incidents; we definitely can see a pattern,” says Anna Neistat from Human Rights Watch (HRW), who recently traveled to the Donetsk region to investigate the kidnappings.”Every single day I would receive reports about yet another person being either abducted or released after being subjected to beatings and torture in captivity,” she says.

According to Neistat, the victims she interviewed suffered “horrendous” violence and acts of cruelty that in many cases led to serious injuries.

HRW estimates that several dozen people are currently being held by the rebels.

Anton, a former separatist militant, corroborated the claims in an interview with RFE/RL.

‘Bloodied, Screaming’ Hostages

The 25-year-old, who gave only his first name for fear of reprisals, said he defected from the insurgency after seeing pro-Ukraine hostages being hauled up the stairs of the Donetsk regional council building – the separatists’ headquarters — bloodied, screaming, and with hoods pulled over their heads.

“People are beaten and then ‘disciplined,’” he said. “They are forbidden to use the word ‘Ukraine,’ to speak Ukrainian, they are told this is now Russia. So yes, captives are beaten and tortured. Then they are taken to the outskirts of the city and released.”

Not all, however, survive the ordeal.

Last month, the bodies of two men were found in a river near the eastern Ukrainian city of Slovyansk bearing signs of torture.

One of them was identified as Volodymyr Rybak, a local official kidnapped in broad daylight shortly after being assaulted by a pro-Russian mob for taking down a separatist flag.

A number of abductees have been missing for weeks and are feared dead.

Simon Ostrovsky, a U.S. journalist detained by separatists in Slovyansk for three days, says he saw a dozen other captives in the cellar of the city’s rebel-held office of the SBU state security services – described by Neistat as “a black hole” into which many people have disappeared without a trace.

Ostrovsky says some of them had been held there for two weeks.

Like most other hostages, Hurov says he was kidnapped in broad daylight by a group of heavily armed, masked men.

He was taken along with five fellow pro-Ukraine activists — another miner and local Novohradovka officials loyal to the Kyiv government — who had gathered on May 4 to discuss ways to get separatists out of their hometown.

He insists their group was peaceful and had focused mostly on removing separatist flags from buildings.

Shadowy Nerve Center

The activists were shoved into a minivan and taken to the regional council building in Donetsk, an 11-story facility that now serves as headquarters for the “Donetsk People’s Republic.”

The building, ringed by barricades and barbed wire, has become notorious as the shadowy nerve center of the separatist movement.

Interrogations and beatings are rumored to take place on the fifth and sixth floors.

Witnesses say a makeshift hospital has been set up on the second floor, with its own operation room and a crew of about 50 medics working in shifts.

Hurov said his captors took him to the fifth floor after briefly parading him outside the building with a Ukrainian flag wrapped around his head.

“They ushered me into an office,” he says. “I could hear my friends screaming from adjacent rooms.”

There, he says he was repeatedly beaten, abused, threatened with death, and injected with a substance that left him groggy and disoriented.

He was released the next day, allegedly in exchange for captured separatists.

The other five activists were also freed. All sustained serious injuries.

‘Well-Honed Interrogation Skills’

According to Anton, the former separatist, the men working on the fifth and sixth floors are from eastern Ukraine.

He says they have well-honed interrogation skills, suggesting backgrounds in law-enforcement and intelligence services.

But he confirms rumors that fighters have arrived from Russia, including Cossack units, to support the separatists.

He also corroborates reports of a makeshift clinic at the regional council building in Donetsk, where medics treat wounded militants and occasionally patch up hostages.

He claims that last week’s raid on the offices of the Red Cross in Donetsk, during which a group of aid workers were held for seven hours, was aimed at seizing drugs for the separatist clinic.

At the time, a spokesman for the “Donetsk People’s Republic” said the Red Cross employees – one of whom was severely beaten — had been detained on suspicion of espionage.

Since defecting, Anton has lived in fear of being himself “disciplined” by his former comrades-in-arms.

“If they find out about it,” he says,” they won’t forgive me.”

Hurov, too, fears for his life and the life of his wife and child, who followed him to Kyiv after receiving threats.

He is not planning to return to eastern Ukraine, where he says the “Donetsk People’s Republic” has sentenced him to death.

Asked about his plans for the future, Hurov is at a loss.

But there are two things he is set on doing as soon as he is discharged from hospital.

The first is to continue the struggle for a united Ukraine.

The second is to restore his tattoo.

“I promise it will be even more beautiful and brighter than before,” he quips. “There’ll be scars, but it can all be fixed. Everything’s going to be alright.”

Под Славянском террористы атаковали украинский блокпост, двое военных погибли - Тымчук

Силами террористов была произведена попытка штурма блок-поста сил АТО в районе Славянска

Об этом сообщает координатор группы Информационное сопротивление Дмитрий Тымчук на своей странице в Facebook.

"В ходе атаки боевиками использовались, кроме автоматического оружия, минометы и гранатометы. В результате боевого столкновения атака была отбита", - собщил он.

Со стороны украинских силовиков 2 человека погибло, 4 ранены.

"Данных по потерям террористов на данный момент нет", - написал Тымчук.

Маразм - это нормально

В РФ выпустили в продажу шоколад, на обертке которого изображена карта России на 2015 год.

На карте показана вся территория России, а также другим цветом отмечены "новые территории" и "перспективные территории".

Как новая территория на обертке шоколада отмечен Крым, а среди перспективных территорий – Латвия, Литва, Эстония, Аляска, Скандинавия, страны Средней Азии, а также Белоруссия и Украина.

Крым

Вже неодноразово повідомлялося про те, що у кримських супермаркетах спорожніли полиці.
І якщо раніше майже не йшлося про південний берег, то нині дефіцит дістався і сюди.

За словами мешканки Сімферополя Ірини Бондаренко, ситуація критична у всіх великих супермаркетах. "Все це розпочалося 2-3 дні тому. Раніше на самому південному березі та у Севастополі все було спокійно. А тепер порожнеча дісталася і сюди".

"Як завжди, тут ніхто нічого не знає. Що буде далі теж не відомо. Кажуть, що фури не пускають з суботи. З червня тут не буде ходити гривня - про це нам повідомили "вчасно", 12-го травня. Продавці кажуть, що оптовики або відмовлятимуться привозити продукти до Криму, а на ліцензії і відкриття нових рубльових рахунків піде час. Все, що залишилося на складах продають по шаленим цінам", - розповідає кримчанка.

Вона також розповідає, що місцеві мешканці скуповують все. "По 30 кг прального порошку, туалетний папір, каву, чай. Тобто все, що можна купити і зберігати довго. Наприклад, ковбаса, яка тиждень тому коштувала 50 грн., нині коштує 80 грн.", - каже вона.

Раніше повідомлялося про порожні полиці в Керчі. У супермаркетах торгової марки "АТБ" повністю зникли з продажу ковбасні вироби та молочна продукція.

Напівпорожніми стоять прилавки з питною водою, маринадами, овочевими консервами, кондитерськими виробами. На очах порожніють полиці з товарами у відділах побутової хімії та гастрономії.

Без слів...

Лідер терористів Ігор Безлер заявляє, що його формування вбило всіх полонених бійців батальону Донбас.

Про це він заявив командиру батальйону Семену Семенченку, про що той розповів виданню ЛIГАБiзнесIнформ.

Командир "Донбасу" також повідомив, що обмін полоненими з терористами не відбувся, оскільки йому дзвонив підполковник ГРУ Росії Ігор Безлер і сказав, що всі полонені знищені.

"Поки не побачу їхніх тіл, підтвердити їхню загибель не можу", - сказав Семенченко.

Він також повідомив, що у п'ятницю в лікарні помер боєць добровольчого батальйону Донбас, що потрапив цього ранку у засідку в районі с. Карлівка Донецької області.

За його словами, у супротивника була "перевага у силах", однак втрати з боку терористів "у три рази більші".

"З тієї сторони були крупнокаліберні кулемети. Підозрюю, що ми натрапили на другий Слов'янськ, який готували під вибори", - зазначив Семенченко.

У той же час Семенчеко вважає, що його батальйон зрадили.

"Як тільки батальйон "Донбас" подав надію на звільнення нових районів Донецької області, сталося поки непояснене. Хоча пояснення все-же є. "Донбас" зрадили й інформація про їхні пересування стала відома терористам", - сказав Семенченко, слова якого на його сторінці опублікували волонтери.

Зв'язок з батальйоном поки недоступний.

Частина бійців "Донбасу" потрапила в полон, або були вбиті. Поранені близько двадцяти бійців батальйону.

Поранені були відправлені в лікарню Донецька. Станом на 17:50 близько 60 сепаратистів оточили лікарню Калініна в Донецьку.

На Дніпропетровщині СБУ затримала 5 диверсантів, які планували підірвати міст

Затримано п’ятьох активістів незареєстрованої організації «Слов’янське братство України», які з метою дестабілізації ситуації в регіоні планували знищувати об’єкти життєво важливої інфраструктури, зокрема збиралися підірвати міст через р. Вовча для перешкоджання пересування армійських підрозділів.

Крім того, встановлено, що зловмисники готувалися цинічно і підступно труїти українських військовослужбовців на блокпостах з боку Донецької області для відкриття «коридору» для озброєних бойовиків.

Диверсанти залучали місцевих мешканців до так званого «Руху опору в Павлограді» та пропагували і поширювали сепаратистські ідеї серед населення.

Під час санкціонованих обшуків у затриманих вилучено вибухові речовини - тротил, амоніт, громоніт.

Вилучено також три одиниці вогнепальної зброї з набоями до неї, проросійську сепаратистську літературу, символіку «Донецької народної республіки» (календарі, прапори, георгіївські стрічки тощо), комп’ютерну техніку та матеріали, що свідчать про протиправну діяльність зловмисників.

Люстрация провалилась: 80% председателей судов вернулись в свои кресла

Принятый под давлением Евромайдана закон о восстановлении доверия к судебной системе не принес результатов. Выборы руководства судов позволили вернуться в свои кресла 80% прежних председателей. Адвокаты уверяют, что в учреждения вернулась и прежняя атмосфера коррупции.

Вчера председатель Верховного Суда(ВСУ) Ярослав Романюк сообщил, что выборы новых председателей завершились практически во всех судах. «На 80% коллективы переизбрали тех же глав судов, что были назначены по ранее действующей процедуре Высшим советом юстиции», — сказал Романюк в ходе круглого стола, посвященного судебной реформе и независимости судей, пишет Капитал.

Председатель люстрационного комитета при Кабинете министров Егор Соболев признался, что предложенные в законе механизмы обновления судейской системы не сработали. Он уверен, что судьи, переизбравшие себе руководство, принимали решение абсолютно сознательно, без давления на них. «Не было никаких нарушений во время голосований, судьи показали, что не готовы стать независимыми. Мы будем поднимать вопрос нового набора судейского корпуса на основании открытого конкурса, проводимого населением», — говорит Соболев.
Напомним, приняв закон о судебной реформе, Верховная Рада с 11 апреля освободила от занимаемых должностей всех председателей судов, их заместителей и секретарей судебных палат. Судьи путем тайного голосования должны были избрать новое руководство, которое ранее назначалось Высшим советом юстиции.

Судья ВСУ Василий Гуменюк считает, что нормы закона о восстановлении доверия к судебной системе изначально не вписывались в провозглашенный новой властью процесс люстрации в судах. По его словам, переизбрание председателей является правом органов судейского самоуправления, а не политиков, желающих видеть своих людей в руководстве судов.

«Цель закона была высокая, но его реализация дала такие результаты. И не стоит говорить о давлении на судей — есть такие суды, где всего работают три-четыре судьи», — сказал Гуменюк.

Адвокат Татьяна Монтян рассказала, что после принятия закона и проведения выборов руководства в судах не изменился ни стиль работы, ни атмосфера. По ее словам, большинство председателей сохранили свои места, и это можно было предвидеть.

«В судах по-прежнему все решают деньги, говорю как человек, постоянно бывающий в таких места», — сказала Монтян.

Единственные заметные перемены произошли в специализированных судах. Так, в Высшем специализированном суде по рассмотрению гражданских и уголовных дел (ВСС) Андрея Солодкова сменил Борис Гулько, а в Высшем хозяйственном суде (ВХС) председателем был избран Богдан Львов, который сменил на этой должности Виктора Татькова. Но выборы здесь проходили при активном давлении сторонников Евромайдана.

Кстати, выборы руководства Высшего административного суда (ВАС) до сегодняшнего дня еще не состоялись — запланированное на понедельник 19 мая собрание судей было перенесено на неопределенный срок. До этого выборы нового руководства ВАС планировалось провести 17 апреля, но после протестов под стенами суда активистов движения «Правый сектор» собрание пришлось отложить. Руководитель пресс-службы ВАС Мария Швенко рассказала, что решение о переносе было принято из соображений безопасности делегатов собрания. Она предположили, что новая дата мероприятия может быть определена после выборов президента, а до этого по закону исполняющим обязанности председателя остается Екатерина Леонтович.

«Принято решение подождать, пока общественная ситуация в стране успокоится. Вопрос исключения кандидатов будет решаться на собрании», — сказала Швенко.

Отметим, что в прошлом году ВАС принял решение о лишении депутатских мандатов пяти народных депутатов, в частности Сергея Власенко, недавно назначенного членом Высшего совета юстиции.

Вместе с тем существует вероятность, что законность принятия люстрационного закона для судей может быть оспорена. 19 мая в Конституционный суд поступило представление от 76 народных депутатов о соответствии Конституции закона о восстановлении доверия к судебной власти. Как пояснили изданию в пресс-службе КСУ, представление было передано в секретариат для правовой экспертизы. В течение 15 дней секретариат должен дать свою оценку — передать в коллегию суда для дальнейшего рассмотрения или отказать в начале производства.

Путін каже, що відвів війська від кордону

Рішення відвести російські війська від кордону ухвалене, аби створити добрі умови для виборів в Україні.

«Наші війська не перебували вже на кордоні, вони дійсно були на достатньо близькій відстані від кордону, і ви, напевно, чули про це, якийсь час назад я дав вказівку міністерству оборони відвести їх до місць тренувань, на полігони, це теж у прилеглих областях, у Ростовській області, поряд», - сказав Путін журналістам, передає РИА Новости.

«Але тепер міністерство оборони одержало іншу вказівку, а саме вивести їх навіть з цих полігонів», - наголосив президент.

«Я ще раз хочу наголосити, зроблено це не тому що ми соромимося тримати там наші війська, ми суверенна держава і тримаємо наші війська там, де ми захочемо, але, щоб створити додаткові доброзичливі умови для майбутніх виборів в Україні (президентські вибори 25 травня), щоб навколо цього не було ніяких спекуляцій, це рішення було ухвалене», - сказав Путін.

«Якщо хтось не бачить, що там відбувається, хай краще подивляться», - сказав Путін. Раніше представники Заходу заявляли, що не помітили відведення військ РФ від російсько-українського кордону.

Він сказав, що «пов'язане це ще й з тим, що кількість військ, бронетехніки досить велика і навіть виведення вимагає серйозної підготовки, зокрема рухомого складу. Я думаю, що за гарної погоди скоро вони все це побачать з космосу».

Odessa’s Jews lay low as violence engulfs their oasis of calm

(JTA) — Although Ukraine has been charting a bloody course toward civil war for months, Irina Zborovskaya had always felt safe in Odessa.

Living in a cosmopolitan city where hate crimes are rare and a tradition of tolerance for minorities and dissidents prevails, many Odessites were lulled into a false sense of security by the absence of violence witnessed elsewhere in their country since November, when protests began that ultimately would lead to the ouster of President Viktor Yanukovych.

But that changed on May 2, when one of the worst bloodbaths to hit Ukraine in recent months erupted in downtown Odessa. Some 42 people died in street fights there between pro-Russian protesters and supporters of the Ukrainian government, many of them perishing after a building was set ablaze.

“Even after all that’s been happening in Ukraine, it had remained unthinkable to us that one Odessite could kill another Odessite like that,” said Zborovskaya, the director of the local office of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.

“In Odessa, there was more calm than in other places,” she said. “But now I cannot think of a single person here who isn’t worried.”

With its bubbling night life, progressive cultural scene and garden cafe culture, Odessa had remained mostly quiet throughout the upheaval that has engulfed much of Ukraine. The city’s Jews — estimates of their population range from 30,000 to 45,000 — saw almost none of the anti-Jewish violence that accompanied the chaos in Kiev, where four serious assaults of Jews have occurred since November. In two eastern Ukrainian cities, unidentified individuals tried to torch synagogues.

But since May 2, the Jewish community of Odessa has been partially paralyzed. While the new Beit Grand Jewish community center is open for regular activities, all special events have been canceled.

The center is home to a kindergarten located about 100 yards from where hundreds of protesters stormed a police headquarters on May 4. The suspension will continue until at least May 25, when Ukraine is due to hold its first elections since the revolution.

“It’s not safe to have people gather in one place right now,” Zborovskaya said.

It appears that no Jews have died as a result of the violence in Odessa, but the eruption has led to reports that local Jewish community leaders were working on an emergency evacuation plan for the city’s Jews. Berl (Boleslav) Kapulkin, a spokesman for the Jewish community of Odessa, said the reports, which appeared last week in the Israeli media, were the result of a misunderstanding. The community has no immediate evacuation plans, Kapulkin said, but there are discussions underway about evacuating in the future if the situation escalates.

“If the conflict will grow here into a real war, we, together with all the [Jewish] community, will leave,” Kapulkin said. “But we pray that this does not happen and that God gives peace to Ukraine.”

“We hope this growth will continue,” Zborovskaya said, “but right now it is hard to make predictions.”Talk of evacuation was particularly shocking given that many see Odessa as the site of a Jewish cultural revival. Since 2010, the city has held four Limmud Jewish learning conferences with hundreds of participants. The community is also about to open its second Jewish museum; the capital Kiev has none.

According to the Jewish Agency, 762 Ukrainian Jews immigrated to Israel in the first quarter of 2014 — an increase of 52 percent over the average of 500 people who immigrated in the corresponding periods of 2009 to 2013. In that period, Israel saw the arrival of 1,900 immigrants on average per year from Ukraine, according to Israel’s absorption ministry.

But many Ukrainian Jews have decided to stay despite the hardships and insecurity, said Tzvi Arieli, a former Israeli soldier who lives in Kiev and recently set up a small Jewish self-defense unit there.

“Those who wanted to come, came,” Arieli said in reference to the mass immigration to Israel in the 1990s of hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian Jews and their family members. “Those who stay, they want to stay.”

One who has resolved to stay is Pavel Kozlenko, the 43-year-old head of the Odessa Holocaust Museum and future director of the city’s second Jewish museum. Kozlenko said local Jews are bound to their city by their rich history. Before the Holocaust, there were 200,000 Jews in Odessa, constituting a third of its population, according to Yad Vashem.

Kozlenko said he wouldn’t leave Odessa, even though he was shocked by the recent violence.

“I can’t reconcile what I saw with my belief in this city of tolerance, which is home to more than a hundred nationalities, which produced such outstanding personalities of science, culture and art,” he said. “I thought such events could not happen here.”