Ukraine's acting president called for the relaunch of an anti-terrorist operation in the east of the country on Tuesday after the body of a local politician from his own party was found showing signs of torture.
Oleksander Turchinov said in a statement that “brutally tortured” bodies had been found near the city of Slaviansk, which is in the hands of pro-Russian militants. One was that of Volodymyr Rybak, a member of Turchinov's Batkivshchyna party, who had recently been abducted by “terrorists.”
“These crimes are being carried out with the full support and indulgence of the Russian Federation,” he said. “I call on the security agencies to relaunch and carry out effective anti-terrorist measures, with the aim of protecting Ukrainian citizens living in eastern Ukraine from terrorists.”
Reporting by Alastair Macdonald; Editing by Richard Balmforth