A pro-protester militia is continuing to expand control over the area around Slovyansk today, marching into the nearby town of Kostyaniynivka and capturing the police station, along with a government building.
The militias quickly seized the buildings without any violence, and protesters backing them were not far behind, setting up the same barricades of sandbags and tires seen at other protester-held buildings.
A spokesman for the regional government said they received demands from those who took the buildings and that they were “the usual demands” for a referendum on federalization.
Ukraine’s central government had briefly suggested they were open to such a referendum, though shortly thereafter they promised to “liquidate” the protesters militarily.
The protester factions across Donetsk aren’t all united on the same position, with some seeking secession and some angling simply for some autonomy. Two rival protest groups ran afoul of one another in Donetsk today, leading to some fistfights and a few injuries.
