Radicals set the building with innocent people inside on fire in Odessa, then strangled the survivors and finished them with bats, while police did nothing to prevent the bloodshed. That'€™s the scary picture a survivor of the massacre told RT. [...]

New video has emerged online which shows a man shooting at the windows of Odessa'€™s burning House of Trade Unions. At least 39 anti-government activists died in the flames on May 2 in the building besieged and set ablaze by radicals. [...]

Self-defense forces in the anti-Kiev stronghold of Slavyansk are Ukrainians, not Russians, who distrust the new regime and the Western powers that support it, New York Times reporters have discovered. The forces also said they are not being paid to fight. Two New York Times reporters have spent a week in the city of Slavyansk in eastern Ukraine, talking to members of the self-defense forces. [...]

Dozens of people died in flames in Odessa, when radicals set ablaze the local House of Trade Unions with anti-government protesters blocked inside. The city is now in mourning for those who died, suffocated in smoke or had to jump out of windows. [...]

"€˜Anger"€™, "€˜disenchantment" and "pride"€™ are three words that perfectly sum up the mood in southeastern Ukraine at the moment. However, there is one thing the majority of citizens in this region crave more than anything -€“ a referendum on their future. [...]

Israeli police reportedly blocked a top UN diplomat, alongside other diplomats and Palestinians, entrance to a pre-Easter Holy Fire ceremony at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, which Israeli authorities called a "€˜micro-incident."€™ Robert Serry, the UN special envoy for Middle East peace, said he and Palestinian Christians were making their way to attend the ‘Holy Fire’ cer [...]

While the Geneva framework agreement seems to be an attempt to de-escalate tensions over Ukraine, it’s a question to what degree the US and the West are really genuine in this agreement, geopolitical analyst Eric Draitser told RT. The US and the EU are still mulling more sanctions against Moscow. [...]

The interim president of Ukraine Turchinov wants to beat the Russians into intervening and provoke war between NATO and Russia, as it'€™s the only reason he can hold power, foreign affairs analyst Daniel Patrick Welch told RT. Russia has called Kiev's action irresponsible and warned that it could trigger a full-blown civil war. How far do you see the situation going? [...]

There is no large Russian military presence in East Ukraine, head of EU intelligence, Commodore Georgij Alafuzoff, has said. The spy chief has dismissed multiple accusations from the West alleging Russian involvement in the unrest in the region. In an interview with Finnish national news broadcaster, Yle, Alafuzoff said the Russian military had nothing to do with the seizing of government building [...]

The Kiev government is having trouble holding power even in western Ukraine, where it should have firm control. Meanwhile it'€™s bringing in mercenaries to retake eastern areas, anti-war activist Daniel Patrick Welch told RT. RT: With those latest events in Lvov, could it be that the interim government is losing support there? [...]

Ukraine'€™s acting Interior Minister is threatening to resolve "€œin 48 hours"€ the situation in eastern regions where administrations of at least two cities are controlled by protesters demanding a nationwide referendum on the state structure. Arsen Avakov told journalists on Wednesday that the coup-imposed government is ready to use force in the mutinous eastern regions. [...]

Thousands of people waving Russian flags flooded the streets of eastern Ukraine on Sunday. Demonstrators in the cities of Donetsk, Lugansk, and Kharkov seized state offices, while in Donetsk they also demanded an independence referendum. Over 2,000 people gathered in Lenin Square in the center of Donetsk to petition for the Berkut officers, who – they believe – are falsely accused of using fir [...]

A bomb exploded in the major airport of Libya's capital, Tripoli, sparking further concerns about the widespread violence that has plunged the crisis-torn country into chaos. Unidentified people managed to get onto the runway at Tripoli International Airport, plant an explosive device at dawn and detonate it using a timer, said Transport Minister Abdelqader Mohammed Ahmed. [...]

A unit of the "€˜Maidan Self-Defense Force"€™ may have played a key part in a raid on a liquor factory in Ukraine. Armed civilians used smoke grenades to storm the building as court bailiffs stood by. The take-over of the Nemiroff vodka plant in the city of Nemirov, Vinnytsia Region in central Ukraine, happened on Wednesday. [...]

The recognition of Kosovo independence set a precedent that gives Crimeans, as well as Basques and Catalans, a right for self-determination, German opposition leader said, lashing out against Angela Merkel'€™s support of sanctions against Russia. Gregor Gysi, a parliamentary head of the largest lower-house opposition party in Germany – the Left Party – has spoken out on Thursday against Germ [...]

The coup-imposed government in Kiev is seeking foreign aid from the US, the EU and the IMF to address its budget shortage. The east remains defiant of the new authorities, while Russia reserves the right to deploy troops in order to prevent bloodshed. Nearly 15,000 people in the Russian city of Perm in the Urals have gathered for a demonstration to support Russian speakers in the autonomous republ [...]

Ukrainian and Western refusal to answer Moscow'€™s hard questions explains Russia'€™s tough stance on the crisis in Kiev. Ignoring Russian concerns is a western habit adopted after the Soviet Union’s collapse; when NATO bombed Yugoslavia; during the recognition of Kosovo as an independent state, and the US push to install an anti-missile shield over Europe that can target Russia. [...]

Diverting from the typical Western line against "Russia's invasion of Crimea," former Ohio congressman and Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich said it was driven by covert action by the United States. [...]

The snipers who shot at protesters and police in Kiev were allegedly hired by Maidan leaders, according to a leaked phone conversation between the EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton and Estonian foreign affairs minister, which has emerged online. [...]