You're reading: Donetsk ‘self-defense forces’ claim to have regained control over Mariupol City Council building

Armed men attempted to storm the Mariupol City Council building in the Donetsk region on Thursday morning, but the so-called self-defense forces countered these attempts, Myroslav Rudenko, a leader of the local self-defense forces, told Interfax.

“Early in the morning, unidentified people opened fire at our
checkpoints in Mariupol and then attempted to occupy the city council
building. Nevertheless, the self-defense forces have regained control
over this building now,” Rudenko said.

Preliminary reports indicate that up to five people sustained
injuries in Mariupol, Rudenko said. “They suffered non-critical
injuries: someone’s arm was broken, others sustained head injuries.
However, no one has been injured seriously. All those injured received
aid either on the spot or at the nearest first-aid station,” he said.

Meanwhile, the TV channel 112 reported that about 30 ‘self-defense
activists’ holding clubs were seen near the City Council building. “The
separatists have reportedly been dispersed, but this information has not
been confirmed,” a journalist said on a television program, adding that
barricades were still in place around the building.

The Mariupol City Council website said negotiations on normalizing
the building’s functioning were under way. “Bomb disposal services and
the Emergency Situations Ministry are examining the building for the
presence of explosive and flammable materials. City Council structural
divisions are continuing to work outside the building, fully performing
their functions on providing the city with vital necessities,” it said.

Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov had announced earlier on
Thursday that security forces had conducted a successful operation to
liberate the Mariupol City Council building from activists who had
seized it earlier.

“Mariupol. The City Council has been liberated for normal work. The
role of civic activists was great. The Interior Ministry currently
organizes its normal functioning. Bomb disposal experts will examine the
building now. The City Council is being taken under protection,” Avakov
said on Facebook on Thursday morning.

“In this particular case, we have avoided casualties. This is good
and right. The process of normalizing the situation in the city will be
continued,” he said.

“The mayor is already inside. As we said before: dissidents will have
a dialogue and a discourse, and terrorists will face a tough response
up to elimination,” he said.

“A patrol unit deployed round-the-clock near the Mariupol City
Council spotted a group of people with bats at about 3:00 a.m. on April
24. It turned out that about 30 people entered the building and demanded
that the invaders vacate the city hall building. A clash occurred
between the protest groups. Law enforcement officials promptly reported
to the scene. Police intervention helped take the conflict under
control. Five casualties who sustained injuries in a fight have been
reported. These people have asked for medical help,” the Interior
Ministry said in a statement available on its website.

A criminal case has been opened into the incident on charges of
deliberate infliction of minor injuries (Ukrainian Criminal Code Article
125, Part 1).

Police are working at the scene.