Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/306519
ByJimHeintz TheAssociatedPress SLOVYANSK, UKRAINE Ukraine launched an offensive against pro- Russian forces for control of a be- sieged eastern city Friday, while clashes between pro- and anti-gov- ernment activists in the previously calm southern port of Odessa led to a fire that police said killed 31 people. The first serious offensive by the government in Kiev and the dozens of deaths in Odessa sharply esca- lated the crisis that has led to the worst tensions between Moscow and the West since the Cold war. The Kremlin said the battle for the separatist-held city of Slovy- ansk effectively destroyed the Ge- neva pact aimed at cooling the un- rest in the deeply divided country. Olek sa nd r T u rchy nov, Ukraine's acting president, said many insurgents were killed or wounded in the eastern offensive that also underlined the military's vulnerability. The offensive came two days after Kiev said it had lost control of eastern Ukraine. Both sides said two Ukrainian helicopters were shot down by the insurgents near Slovyansk, killing two crew members, while authori- ties said another seven people also died: three separatist gunmen, two soldiers and two civilians. By nightfall, Ukrainian troops and armored personnel carriers blocked all major roads into Slovy- ansk, and the central part of the city remained in the hands of pro- Russia gunmen, according to As- sociated Press journalists inside. Most shops were closed, and the few that were open were crowded with customers stocking up on supplies. The Ukrainian Security Service said one helicopter was downed with a surface-to-air missile, add- ing that the sophisticated weapon undercut Russia's claims the city of 125,000 people was simply un- der the control of armed locals. "Ukrainian security forces so far are not ready for large-scale military actions; moreover, such actions could provoke Russia's in- vasion," said Kiev-based political analyst Volodymyr Fesenko. Russia has massed tens of thousands of troops in areas near Ukraine's border. Kiev claims Moscow is preparing to invade and that it is fomenting the unrest in the east, where insurgents have seized government buildings in about a dozen cities in towns. The Kremlin denies the allegations, but Foreign Minister Sergey Lav- rov has warned Russia would re- spond to attacks on Russian citi- zens or interests in the east. Unlike eastern Ukraine, Odessa had been largely untroubled since the February toppling of President Viktor Yanukovych, who fled to Russia. But clashes erupted Friday between pro-Russians and govern- ment supporters in the key port on the Black Sea coast, located 330 miles from the turmoil in the east. Police said the deadly fire broke out in a trade union building, but did not give details on how it started. Earlier, police said at least three people had died in a clash be- tween the two sides. According to Ukrainian news reports, the pro-Kiev demonstra- tors broke up an encampment of Moscow supporters outside the trade union building. The latter then took refuge in the building, which then caught on fire. Odessa police spokesman Volodymyr Shasbliyenko told AP that the fire apparently was caused by Molotov cocktails. He had no further details or identities of the victims. A spokesman for Russian Pres- ident Vladimir Putin said the Ukrainian offensive "effectively de- stroyed the last hope for the im- plementation of the Geneva agree- ment" of two weeks ago that aimed to defuse the crisis. But Dmitry Peskov also said Russia "continues to undertake consistent efforts on de-escalation." In Washington, German Chan- cellor Angela Merkel and Presi- dent Barack Obama warned that Russia could be hit by new sanc- tions from the U.S. and the Euro- pean Union if it continues disrup- tive actions in Ukraine. Previous sanctions are showing signs of sig- nificant effect on the Russian econ- omy. The fighting in Slovyansk, a city about 100 miles from the Russian border, broke out around dawn. Stella Khorosheva, a spokes- woman for the insurgents, said three fighters and two civilians were killed in the clashes. One wounded helicopter pi- lot was seen in video from a pro- Moscow TV station, Rossiya-24, as being in the hands of pro-Rus- sia forces. Several foreign news crews, meanwhile, were detained for several hours Friday by nervous pro-Russia militia before being released. CBS reported that one journalist was beaten. Slovyansk is strategically key because Ukraine has a huge stock- pile of automatic rifles and other light weapons near the city, ac- cording to a commentary Friday for Britain's Royal United Services Institute defense think-tank. EUROPE Ukrainian unrest spreads; dozens dead in Odessa MANUBRABO—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Ukrainian Army soldiers line up in front of pro-Russia civilians who were blocking the road in the Andreevka, south of Slaviansk, Ukraine, on Friday. Russia has massed tens of thousands of troops in areas near Ukraine's border. News feed WASHINGTON House Speaker John Boehner de- clared Friday he would cre- ate a select committee to in- vestigate the Benghazi attack, providing Republicans with a high-profile forum to target the Obama administration's credibility ahead of crucial midterm elections. Boehner said U.S. officials misled the American people after the Sept. 11, 2012, assault on the U.S. diplomatic out- post in Libya that killed Am- bassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans. He said emails released this week showed the White House has withheld documents from con- gressional investigators. "Americans learned this week that the Obama admin- istration is so intent on ob- structing the truth about Benghazi that it is even will- ing to defy subpoenas issued by the standing committees of the people's House," Boehner, R-Ohio, said in a statement. Separately, the Republican chairman of the House over- sight committee said Friday he would subpoena Secretary of State John Kerry to testify about the administration's re- sponse to the attack. — The Associated Press WASHINGTON Boehnertoappoint Benghazi committee WASHINGTON The Demo- cratic National Committee's rulemaking body is recom- mending a 2016 presidential voting schedule that begins with the Iowa caucuses on Feb. 1 and follows with voting that month in New Hamp- shire, Nevada and South Car- olina. Under that calendar, Iowa retains its first-to-vote status while New Hampshire contin- ues to hold the nation's first primary. The full DNC is ex- pected to decide on the details of the calendar in August. The Democrats' rules and bylaws committee met Fri- day in Washington. Its pro- posed calendar sticks closely to the framework laid out by the Republican National Committee. The GOP plan allows for those four states to vote in February but doesn't specify dates. Democrats recommended that the New Hampshire pri- mary be held on Feb. 9, the Nevada caucuses no earlier than Feb. 20, and the South Carolina primary on Feb. 27. Other states would be al- lowed to hold their contests from March 1 through the second Tuesday in June. — The Associated Press POLITICS Dems propose February voting to begin '16 race BELFAST,NORTHERNIRELAND NorthernIrelandpolicewere granted an extra 48 hours Fri- day to interrogate Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams about the1972IRAkillingofaBelfast widow, infuriating his Irish nationalist party and raising questions about the stability of theprovince'sCatholic-Protes- tant government. The Police Service of Northern Ireland confirmed in a statement its detec- tives received permission at a closed-door hearing with a judge to detain Adams for up to two more days. Had the request been re- fused, authorities would have been required to charge Ad- ams or release him Friday night, two days after his ar- rest in the abduction, slay- ing and secret burial of Jean McConville, a mother of 10. The new deadline is Sunday night, although this too could be extended with judicial permission. The unexpectedly long de- tention of Adams left senior party colleagues seething. Sinn Fein warned it could end its support for law and order in Northern Ireland if Adams is charged. — The Associated Press IRELAND KILLING Police get extra hours to question Gerry Adams MILFORD, CONN. A 16-year- old charged in the fatal stab- bing of a high school student on the day of the prom is show- ing signs of an active psycho- sis, his attorney said Friday. Christopher Plaskon, who made his first court appear- ance Friday, is charged with murder in the slaying of Maren Sanchez, a friend who was stabbed to death last week in a hallway at Jonathan Law High School in Milford. Plaskon showed no visible emotion during the brief hear- ing. He had handcuffs and leg shackles and no shoes as he stood next to his attorneys and his uncle Paul Healy, who was appointed his guardian. Plaskon was ordered transferred to the state's Manson Youth Institution in Cheshire, where he will be placed at a hospital under suicide watch. He will not en- ter a plea until after a prob- able cause hearing, which is scheduled for June 4. The attack occurred last Friday, hours before the school's junior prom, and po- lice have been investigat- ing whether it was related to Sanchez's refusal to be Plas- kon's prom date. — The Associated Press CONNECTICUT STABBING Lawyer: Suspect has signs of psychosis ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. New Mexico is in line to become the next state to take aim at the use of drones for hunting big game animals. Alaska, Colorado and Mon- tana already have outlawed the use of drones in hunting, but some sportsmen groups and animal advocates are push- ing to see that regulations are passed in every state to pro- tect the concept of fair chase. They argue the art of hunting should be based on skills and traditions that have been honed and passed down over generations, not technological advancements such as drones. "Hunting an animal with your physical senses, with your eyes and your ears and even to a lesser extent your sense of smell, that puts you on fairly even ground with these animals that can see far better, hear far better and smell far better than we can," said Joel Gay, a spokes- man for the New Mexico Wildlife Federation. Drones would simply take the challenge out of hunting and could lead to the sport becoming more exclusive, Gay and others said. — The Associated Press SPORT New Mexico taking aim at drone use in hunting By Josh Lederman The Associated Press WASHINGTON Projecting unity on Ukraine, President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel threatened tougher and broader new sanctions against Russia on Friday if Moscow doesn't quickly change its dis- ruptive behavior. "We will not have a choice but to move forward with addi- tional more-severe sanctions" if Russia disrupts a presiden- tial election in Ukraine sched- uled for May 25, Obama said at a news conference with Merkel outside the White House. "Further sanctions will be unavoidable," Merkel agreed. Both leaders made it clear that the next step would be to order sanctions on separate parts of the Russian economy or military — on energy or arms for example — but nei- ther leader specified precisely what was being considered. Putin "needs to be dis- suaded from his current course," Obama said. The two leaders also made it clear they have differences when it comes to U.S. surveil- lance overseas, an evident ref- erence to earlier reports that the Americans had listened in to at least some of Merkel's conversations on her personal cellphone. "There are still some gaps that need to be worked through," the president said. Merkel was diplomatic, as well, but a shade more blunt: "We have differences of opin- ion to overcome." The two leaders met as the European Union announced it would hold talks with Ukraine and Russia later this month on the price of natural gas, an attempt to avoid any disrup- tion in supplies. Moscow re- cently hiked the price of gas shipped to Ukraine to $485 per thousand cubic meters from $268.50, and threatened to limit deliveries if Kiev does not meet the new price and re- pay a debt of $3.5 billion. In their remarks, Obama and Merkel both said they would prefer the situation in Ukraine to be settled through diplomacy. Obama said Putin is free to offer his own views with regard to events in Ukraine, but it isn't acceptable for the Kremlin to think "it has veto power" over decisions made by a duly elected government in Kiev. WORLD Broader Russia sanctions threatened NEWS » redbluffdailynews.com Saturday, May 3, 2014 MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS B4