30 May 2014 21:00
The Ukrainian Army has been intensifying its military crackdown on pro-Russian rebels in Slavyansk, Ukraine. 14 Ukrainian Army soldiers were killed, including an army general, when rebels shot down a Ukrainian Army helicopter over the city. As the situation has deteriorated, civilians have been caught in the crossfire and a local psychiatric hospital has been shelled.
Also killed were Italian journalist Andrea Rocchelli and his interpreter Andrey Mironov who died when they were hit by mortar fire in Slavyansk.
These photos illustrate the chaos of Slavyansk between May 24-29, 2014. Included in the photos is 65-year-old local woman Olga Prokhorenko, who was killed by shrapnel from a mortar shell. Images also show damage done to civilian infrastructure, including the home of a local Meskhetian Turk, and smoke rising from the area of the downed Ukrainian military helicopter.