Abducted OSCE observers freed in east Ukraine
A team of international military observers seized by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine was freed Saturday as Kiev resumed military action to tackle the pro-Moscow gunmen who have overrun the region.
Separatists abducted eight Western observers for watchdog Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in the flashpoint city of Slavyansk on April 25. They were seized alongside five Ukrainians; one of the observers was later released for medical reasons.
The self declared mayor of Slavyansk, Vyacheslav Ponomarev, confirmed the release of the remaining 12 members of the OSCE, adding Russian envoy Vladimir Lukin, who arrived in eastern Ukraine on Friday, had helped negotiate their release.
An OSCE delegation waited to collect the observers at a checkpoint on the outskirts of the town, he said, adding there had been no prisoner exchange.
“Right now we are expecting another storming of the town,” Ponomarev told CNN.
The OSCE also confirmed the release in a tweet.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague welcomed the news in a tweet, adding “all other hostages held by illegal armed groups should be released.”
The news came as Ukraine’s government resumed military action to tackle pro-Russian separatists in the east, where violence flared on Friday.
Pro-Russian separatists downed two helicopters in the volatile region while clashes in the southern port city of Odessa sparked a fire that killed dozens, raising the question of whether the country can stave off a possible civil war