Ukrainian separatist leader Zakharchenko killed in restaurant bombing


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Moscow: A blast in a war-themed cafe has killed Alexander Zakharchenko, prime minister of the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic, a Russian separatist enclave in eastern Ukraine.


The death of the most prominent pro-Russia rebel underlined the dismal prospects for resolving the conflict that has killed more than 10,000 people.


Rebel leader Alexander Zakharchenko stands for his swearing in ceremony in Donetsk in November 2014.

Rebel leader Alexander Zakharchenko stands for his swearing in ceremony in Donetsk in November 2014.


Photo: AP

Rebel and Russian authorities blamed the Ukrainian government, with some suggesting that the United States had a role, while a top Ukrainian security official said the blast was likely the result of the separatists’ factional infighting or an operation by Russian special forces.


Photographs from the scene posted on social media sites showed blown-out windows and armed men milling about. The blast killed Zakharchenko and wounded three others, including his dining companion, the minister of finance of the self-declared People’s Republic.


The spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, blamed the Ukrainian government, saying that “there is every reason to suggest that the Kiev regime stands behind this murder.” And Russia’s speaker of Parliament suggested that because Zakharchenko was one of the parties who signed the Minsk II peace agreement, that pact was no longer valid.


Article source: https://www.smh.com.au/sport/proteas-opener-gives-australia-plenty-to-ponder-20180307-p4z35t.html?utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss_feed

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