Arsen Avakov, the Minister of Internal Affairs, said on 9 April that the separatist problem would be

resolved within forty-eight hours, through either negotiations or the use of force. "There are two
opposite ways for resolving this conflict a political dialogue and the heavy-handed approach.
We are ready for both," he said, according to the Ukrinform state news agency. At the time,
President Oleksandr Turchynov had already signed a decree which called for the Donetsk
Regional State Administration building, which had been occupied by separatists, to be taken
"under state protection".[139][140] He offered amnesty to any separatists who laid down their arms
and surrendered.[210] By 11 April, the Prime Minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, said that he was against
the use of "law enforcement" at the time, but that "there was a limit" to how much the Ukrainian
government would tolerate.[211]
In response to the spread of separatist control throughout Donetsk Oblast, and the refusal of the
separatists to lay down their arms, Turchynov vowed to launch a military counter-offensive
operation against insurgents in the region on 15 April. [138][212] As part of the counter-offensive,
Ukrainian troops re-took the airfield in Kramatorsk after a skirmish with members of the Donbass
People's Militia. At least four people died as a result.[213]
After the Armed Forces of Ukraine re-took the airfield, the commanding general of the unit that
had retaken it, Vasyliy Krutov, was surrounded by hostile protesters who demanded to know why
the Ukrainian troops had fired upon local residents. [214] Krutov was then dragged back to the
airbase along with his unit. They were then blocked by the protesters, who vowed not to let the
troops leave the base.[214] Krutov later told reporters that "if they [the separatists] do not lay down
their arms, they will be destroyed".[215]

Ukrainian military roadblocks in Donetsk oblast

Donbass People's Militia insurgents entered Sloviansk on 16 April, along with six armoured
personnel carriers they claimed to have obtained from the 25th Airborne Brigade, which had
surrendered in the city of Kramatorsk.[216][217][218][219] Reports say members of the brigade were
disarmed after the vehicles were blocked from passing by angry locals. [220] In another incident,
several hundred residents of the village of Pchyolkino, south of Sloviansk, surrounded another
column of fourteen Ukrainian armoured vehicles. Following negotiations the troops were allowed
to drive their vehicles away, but only after agreeing to surrender the magazines from their assault

rifles.[220]These incidents led President Turchynov to disband the 25th Airborne Brigade. [221] Three
members of the Donbass People's Militia were killed, eleven wounded, and sixty-three were
arrested after they attempted and failed to storm a National Guard base in Mariupol.[222][223]
Turchynov relaunched the stalled counter-offensive against pro-Russian insurgents on 22 April,
after two men, one a local politician, were found "tortured to death". [224][225] The politician,
Volodymyr Rybak, was found dead near Sloviansk after having been abducted by pro-Russian
insurgents. Turchynov said that "the terrorists who effectively took the whole Donetsk Oblast
hostage have now gone too far".[224]The Internal Affairs Ministry reported that the city of
Sviatogorsk, near Sloviansk, was retaken by Ukrainian troops on 23 April. [226] In addition, the
Defence Ministry said it had taken control over all points of strategic importance in the area
around Kramatorsk.[227]

Pro-separatist rally in Sloviansk, 9 May 2014

The Internal Affairs Minister, Arsen Avakov, said on 24 April that Ukrainian troops had captured
the city administration in Mariupol, after a clash with pro-Russian demonstrators there.[228]
[229]

Despite this, a report by the BBC said that whilst it appeared that Ukrainian troops and the

mayor of Mariupol did enter the building in the early morning, Ukrainian troops had abandoned it
by the afternoon. Local pro-Russian activists blamed Ukrainian nationalists for the attack upon
the building, but said that the DPR had regained control. A representative of the Republic, Irina
Voropoyeva, said "We, the Donetsk People's Republic, still control the building. There was an
attempted provocation but now it's over".[228]
On the same day, Ukrainian government officials said that the Armed Forces had intended to
retake the city of Sloviansk, but that an increased threat of "Russian invasion" halted these
operations.[230] Russian forces had mobilised within 10 kilometres (6 14 mi) of the Ukrainian border.
[230]

The officials said that seven troops were killed during the day's operations. President

Turchynov issued a statement later in the day, and said that the "anti-terrorist" operation would
be resumed, citing the ongoing hostage crisis in Sloviansk as a reason.[231] By 6 May, fourteen
Ukrainian troops had died and sixty-six had been injured in the fighting. [232]

Standoff between pro-Russian locals and Ukrainian forces in Mariupol, 9 May 2014

Early in the morning on 7 May, the National Guard retook the city administration in Mariupol after
heavy fighting with insurgents overnight.[233][234] Anti-government demonstrators said that
government forces had used a "toxic gas" during the operation, resulting in injuries when the
demonstrators tried to re-occupy the building after the National Guard withdrew.[235] By 7 May, the
flag of the DPR was once again flying over the building. [235]
Ukrainian troops launched another attack on insurgents in Mariupol on 9 May. During an assault
on an occupied police building, that building was set alight by government forces, causing the
insurgents to flee.[236] Arsen Avakov said that sixty insurgents attacked the police building, not
Ukrainian troops, and that the police and other government forces had managed to repel the
insurgents. Between six and twenty militants were killed, along with one police officer.[237] Four
militants were captured, and five policemen were wounded.[238]One armoured personnel carrier
was captured by pro-Russian protesters during the fighting. After the clashes, pro-Russian forces
built barricades across the city center.[237] Concurrently, Ukrainian National News said that
separatists attempted to disarm Ukrainian troops near Donetsk. The troops resisted by firing
warning shots, and arresting one-hundred of the separatists.[239] Also, an unnamed Ukrainian
Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)priest attempted to negotiate with separatists
near Druzhkivka, but was later killed after being shot eight times.[240] This was confirmed by the
Church and the Prosecutor's Office.[241]
Donetsk People's Republic activists took control of the city administration building in Mariupol on
13 April.[170][171] The Ukrainian government claimed to have "liberated" the building on 24 April, but
this was denied by locals interviewed by the BBC near the building.[172]
Clashes between government forces and pro-Russian groups escalated in early May, when the
city administration building was briefly retaken by the Ukrainian National Guard. The pro-Russian
forces quickly took the building back.[173] Militants then launched an attack on a local police
station, leading the Ukrainian government to send in military forces. Skirmishes between the
troops and local demonstrators caused the city administration building to be set on fire.
Government forces, however, were unsuccessful in forcing out the pro-Russians, and only further
inflamed tensions in Mariupol.[173] On 16 May, however, Metinvest steelworkers, along with local
police and security forces, routed the insurgents from the city administration and other occupied
government buildings in the city.[174]Most insurgents left the city, and those few remaining were

said to be unarmed. Despite this, the headquarters of the Donetsk People's Republic in the city
remained untouched, and pro-Russian demonstrators could still be seen outside the burnt city
administration.[175]
Ukrainian troops gained control of the city on 13 June, with assistance from the National Guard.
[176]

The headquarters of the DPR was captured. Mariupol was then declared the provisional

capital of Donetsk Oblast, in place of Donetsk city, which was occupied by separatists. [177][178]
Other cities[edit]
Many smaller cities across the Donbass fell to the separatists.
In Artemivsk on 12 April, separatists failed to capture the local Ministry of Internal Affairs office,
but instead captured the city administration building and raised the Donetsk People's Republic
flag over it.[179] The city administration buildings in Yenakiieve andDruzhkivka were also captured.
[180][181][182]

Police repelled an attack by pro-Russian militants upon an office of the Ministry of

Internal Affairs in Krasnyi Lyman on 12 April, but the building was later captured by the
separatists after a skirmish.[183][184] Insurgents affiliated with the Donbass People's Militia occupied
a regional administration building in Khartsyzk on 13 April, followed by a local administration
building in Zhdanivka on 14 April.[137][165][185] Demonstrators hoisted the flag of the Donetsk People's
Republic over the city administration buildings in Krasnoarmiisk and Novoazovsk on 16 April.[186]
[187]

The local administration building in Siversk was similarly captured on 18 April.[188][189] Following

the takeover, local police announced that they would co-operate with the activists. [188]On 20 April,
separatists in Yenakiieve left the city administration building there which they had occupied since
13 April.[182] Despite this, by 27 May the city was still not under Ukrainian government control.
[190]

Pro-Russian demonstrators in Kostiantynivka burnt down the offices of a newspaper that had

been critical of the DPR on 22 April.[191]

70 to 100 insurgents armed with assault rifles and rocket launches attacked an armoury in
Artemivsk on 24 April.[192] The depot housed around thirty tanks. Ukrainian troops attempted to
fight off the insurgents, but were forced to retreat after a substantial number of men were
wounded by insurgent fire.[192][193] The Minister of Internal Affairs, Arsen Avakov, said that the
insurgents were led by a man with "an extensive bear", referring to the Russian militant
Alexander Mozhaev.[192] Some thirty militants seized the police headquarters in Konstantinovka on
28 April.[194] On the next day, a city administration building in Pervomaisk was overrun by Luhansk
People's Republic insurgents, who then raised their flag over it.[160][195][196] On the same day,
militants seized control over the city administration building in Alchevsk.[197][198] In Krasnyi Luch, the
city administration conceded to demands by separatist activists to support the referendums on
the status of Donetsk and Luhansk being held on 11 May, and followed by raising the Russian
flag over the city administration building.[195]

Insurgents occupied the city administration building in Stakhanov on 1 May. Later in the week,
they captured the local police station, business centre, and SBU building. [199][200]Activists
in Rovenky occupied a police building on 5 May, but quickly left it.[201] On the same day, the police
headquarters in Slovianoserbsk was seized by members of the Army of the South-East, which is
affiliated with the Luhansk People's Republic.[202][203] The town of Antratsyt was occupied by a
number of renegade Don Cossacks.[204][205][206][207]Insurgents went on to seize the prosecutor's office
in Sievierodonetsk on 7 May.[208] On the next day, supporters of the Luhansk People's Republic
captured government buildings in Starobilsk.[209]
Militants attempted to seize the police headquarters in Horlivka on 12 April, but were
halted. Ukrayinska Pravda reported that police said that the purpose of the attempted seizure
was to gain access to a weapons cache.[162] They said that they would use force if needed to
defend the building from "criminals and terrorists".[163] By 14 April, however, militants had
successfully captured the building after a tense standoff with the police. [136] Some members of the
local police unit defected to the Donetsk People's Republic earlier in the day, whilst the remaining
offices were forced to retreat, allowing the insurgents to take control of the building. [164][164][165] The
local chief of police was captured and badly beaten by the insurgents. [166] A Horlivka city council
deputy, Volodymyr Rybak, was kidnapped by masked men believed to be pro-Russian militants
on 17 April. His body was later found in a river on 22 April. [167] The city administration building was
seized on 30 April, solidifying separatist control over Horlivka.[168] Self-proclaimed mayor of
Horlivka Volodymyr Kolosniuk was arrested by the SBU on suspicion of participation in "terrorist
activities" on 2 July.[169]Separatist militants took control of the city administration building, police
offices, and SBU building in Sloviansk, a city in the northern part of Donetsk Oblast, on 12 April.
[142][149]

After militants took over the city, Sloviansk mayor Nelya Shtepa briefly appeared at an

occupied police station, and expressed support for the militants.[142]Others gathered outside the
building, and similarly voiced their support for the militants. They told Ukrainian journalists who
were reporting on the situation to "go back to Kiev".[142] Nelya Shtepa was later detained by the
insurgents, and replaced by the self-proclaimed "people's mayor" Vyacheslav Ponomarev. The
separatists gained control of the city's police weapons cache and seized hundreds of firearms,
which prompted the Ukrainian government to launch a "counter-terrorism" operation to retake the
city.[145][150] This government counter-offensive began on the morning of 13 April.[151] As a result, an
entrenched standoff between pro-Russian forces and the Armed Forces of Ukraine ensued,
marking the start of combat in Donbass.[152] The city remained under siege until 5 July, when
Ukrainian forces recaptured it, with an estimated 1520,000 people displaced by the fighting. [153]
[154]

Mayor Shtepa has been jailed since 11 July 2014 for allegedly colluding with pro-Russian

separatists.[155]
Kramatorsk[edit]
Main article: Battle of Kramatorsk

In Kramatorsk, a city in northern Donetsk Oblast, separatists attacked a police station on 13 April,
resulting in a shootout.[156][157] The fighters, members of the Donbass People's Militia, later
captured the police station. They removed the police station's sign and raised the flag of the
Donetsk People's Republic over the building.[158] They then issued an ultimatum that stated that if
the city's mayor and administration did not swear allegiance to the Republic by the following
Monday, they would remove them from office.[158][159]Concurrently, a crowd of demonstrators
surrounded the city administration building, captured it, and raised the Donetsk People's
Republic flag over it. A representative of the Republic addressed locals outside the occupied
police station, but was received negatively and booed. [158]
After a government counter-offensive as part of the "anti-terror" operation in Donetsk Oblast on
23 May, the insurgents were routed from Kramatorsk's occupied SBU building. [160] Despite this,
Ukrainian troops quickly withdrew from the city for unknown reasons, and the separatists quickly
regained control. Sporadic fighting continued until 5 July, when the insurgents withdrew from
Kramatorsk.[161]
After having gained control of the Donetsk RSA and having declared the Donetsk People's
Republic, pro-Russian groups vowed to fan out and take control of strategic infrastructure across
Donetsk Oblast, and demanded that public officials who wished to continue their work swear
allegiance to the Republic.[133] By 14 April, pro-Russian separatists had taken control of
government buildings in many other cities within the oblast,
including Mariupol, Horlivka, Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, Yenakiieve,Makiivka, Druzhkivka,
and Zhdanivka.[134][135][136][137]

First standoff[edit]
In response to the widening unrest, the acting Ukrainian President, Oleksandr Turchynov, vowed
to launch a major "anti-terror" operation against separatist movements in Donetsk Oblast. [138] The
Minister of Internal Affairs, Arsen Avakov, said on 9 April that the unrest in Donetsk Oblast would
be resolved within forty-eight hours, either through negotiations or the use of force. President
Oleksandr Turchynov signed a decree to retake the Donetsk RSA building, and place it "under
state protection,"[139][140] and offered amnesty to the demonstrators if they laid down their arms. [141]

Expansion of territorial control[edit]

Unmarked separatist militants seized the Donetsk city office of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on
12 April without resistance.[142] Following negotiations between the militants and those in the
building, the chief of the office resigned from his post.[143] Officers from the Berkut special police
force, which had been dissolved by the government following the February revolution, took part
in the seizure on the separatists' side.[144][145] Following this seizure, the militants began to expand
their control across the city. The municipal administration building was stormed and occupied by

the insurgents on 16 April.[146]Further actions by the separatists resulted in the capture of the
offices of the regional state television network on 27 April.[147] After capturing the broadcasting
centre, the militants began to broadcast Russian television channels. On 4 May, the flag of the
Donetsk People's Republic was raised over the police headquarters in Donetsk city proper.[148]
Attempts to seize the Donetsk Regional State Administration (RSA) building began since proRussian protests erupted in the eastern and southern regions of Ukraine, in the wake of the 2014
Ukrainian revolution. Pro-Russian protesters occupied the Donetsk RSA from 16 March, before
being removed by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).[116][117] On 6 April, 1,0002,000 people
gathered at a rally in Donetsk to demand a status referendum similar to the one held in Crimea in
March.[118][119]The demonstrators stormed the RSA building, and took control of its first two floors.
They said that if an extraordinary legislative session was not held by regional officials to
implement a status referendum, they would take control of the regional government with a
"people's mandate", and dismiss all elected regional councillors and members of parliament. [120][121]
[122]

As these demands were not met, the activists held a meeting in the RSA building, and voted

in favour of independence from Ukraine. They proclaimed the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR).
[123]

Luhansk Oblast[edit]
Unrest in Luhansk Oblast began on 6 April, when approximately 1,000 activists seized and
occupied the SBU building in the city of Luhansk, following similar occupations in the cities
of Donetsk and Kharkiv.[124][125] Protesters barricaded the building, and demanded that all arrested
separatist leaders be released.[124][126] Police were able to retake control of the building, but the
demonstrators regathered for a 'people's assembly' outside the building and called for a 'people's
government', demanding either federalisation or incorporation into the Russian Federation.[127]
[128]

At this assembly, they elected Valery Bolotov to the position of "People's Governor".[129] Two

referendums were announced, one on 11 May to determine whether the region should seek
some form of autonomy, and a second scheduled for 18 May to determine whether the region
should join the Russian Federation, or declare independence.[130]
The Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) was declared on 27 April.[131] Representatives of the
Republic demanded that Ukrainian government provide amnesty for all protesters, enshrine
Russian as an official language, and hold a referendum on the status of the region. [131] They
issued an ultimatum that stated that if Kiev did not meet their demands by 14:00 on 29 April, they
would launch an insurgency in tandem with that of the Donetsk People's Republic.[131][132]