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Ukraine seeks "terrorist organizations" status for rebel groups

Xinhua, January 15, 2015 Adjust font size:

The Ukrainian Parliament on Wednesday passed a resolution urging the international community to designate groups of independence-seeking insurgents in eastern regions as "terrorist organizations".

According to a statement on the parliament's website, in the near future Kiev will officially appeal to the European Union (EU) member states, the United States, Australia and some other foreign countries requesting their leadership to recognize the self- proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics as groups belonging to "terrorist organizations".

The resolution has been passed following the deaths of 12e civilians in a shelling of a bus in eastern Ukraine Tuesday, which Ukrainian Security Service has classified as a "terror act".

Kiev accused rebels of being responsible for the incident, while insurgents denied their involvement, blaming government forces for the shelling.

The insurgent-controlled areas in Ukraine's Donetsk and Lugansk regions proclaimed their independence from Ukraine last April after referendums, which Kiev rejected as "illegal and unconstitutional".

Following the developments, the Ukrainian government launched a military operation against the rebels, in which over 4,700 people have been killed so far. Endite