by Stephen Lendman

On May 29, Itar Tass headlined "About 300 Ukrainian mercenaries from Syria fighting in south-eastern Ukraine - source."

Most "are from western regions of Ukraine, a source in the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces says." More on this below. http://sjlendman.blogspot.com/2014/05/blackwater-killers-in-ukraine.html
A previous article explained the following:

Bild am Sonntag is Germany's largest Sunday circulation broadsheet. It reported Academi operatives near Slavyansk.

It's uncertain who hired them, it said. Washington's dirty hands are involved. Russia's Foreign Ministry said:

"(I)n the absence of support from the Ukrainian population, the Maidan government has only one option if it wants to remain in power - to mobilize any support possible from foreign sponsors, including foreign mercenaries."

"Among the candidates for the role of gendarme is the company Greystone Limited, registered in Barbados, which is integrated with the Academi corporation," it said.

"It is an analogue, or, probably, an affiliate body of the Blackwater private army, whose soldiers have been accused of committing rigorous and regular human rights abuses in troubled regions."

Note: Greystone is a private company. In 2010, it separated from Academi. Both firms maintain close ties. They operate the same way. They do so extrajudicially.

"It looks as though this practice, if it really is implemented, goes against the Ukrainian laws that ban foreign citizens from working with private security companies," said Russia's Foreign Ministry.

"Such initiatives demonstrate that those who have conquered their place in power in Kiev cannot guarantee minimal order or even their own security."

"The question arises, what the price of this plan is and where the money will come from."

"To what extent will the burden of spending on highly-paid foreign specialists be shifted to ordinary Ukrainians who, in connection with the painful tax increase, including taxes on gas as the precondition for securing loans from the International Monetary Fund, will have to tighten their belts even stronger?"

Kiev putschists can't defeat Eastern Ukrainian freedom fighters on their own. Mercenary extremists are enlisted to help.

So are neo-Nazi Right Sector thugs. On May 4, Fars News said Saudi Arabia shifted extremist Takfiri fighters from Syria to Ukraine.

They're Saudi and Chechnian nationals. They "receive financial and military backup from the Saudi intelligence agency…"

Weeks earlier, they arrived in Kiev. They were "immediately dispatched to Kramatosk city in Eastern Ukraine, and are now fighting beside the Ukrainian army forces against the pro-Russians under the name of militias who support the government."

A previous article explained. Fars News said Saudi Arabia wants revenge.

It wants Moscow punished for supporting Syria's Bashar al-Assad.

Last July, Saudi Prince Bandar bin Sultan visited Moscow. He tried bribing Vladimir Putin.

In return for billions of dollars in Russian arms purchases and other economic incentives, he wanted him to stop supporting Assad.

He discovered Putin isn't for sale. He rejected Bandar's blood money.

He "redoubled his support for the Syrian government in response to Bandar's blend of bribes and warnings," said Fars News.

He "issued his own thinly veiled threats against the Saudis."

On May 29, Itar Tass reported the latest, saying:

"About 300 Ukrainian mercenaries who fought in Syria on the opposition side against Bashar Assad returned to Ukraine in March-April and are now participating in the punitive operation of Ukrainian government forces in the southeast of Ukraine, according to a source in the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces."

"After returning from Syria, they joined the battalion of Right Sector radicals participating in the government forces' punitive operation against residents in southeastern regions of the country."

"Most of the mercenaries are from western regions of Ukraine. Among them are snipers and soldiers of Special Forces known for their cruelty."

"They fought in more than one 'hotspot,' including in the North Caucasus where they participated in fighting against federal forces."

Kiev's war without mercy continues. It rages. According to its defense minister Mykhaylo Koval, military operations will continue until anti-government resistance is eliminated.

Scores so far died on both sides. Civilians suffered most. On Friday, Slavyansk was shelled. A children's hospital and clinic were hit.

On Wednesday, mortar fire targeted a school and kindergarten. A teacher said the roof "was simply blown away."

Luckily no children were hurt. Maybe next time they'll be killed. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay shames the office she holds.

She justifies the unjustifiable. She serves Western interests exclusively. She substitutes misinformation rubbish for hard truths.

Her words ring hollow. She "call(ed) on the Ukrainian authorities to ensure that no excessive force is used, not to take discriminatory action and to avoid action that can harm the civilian population."

She sounds like Ban Ki-moon. They lie for power. They're imperial stooges.

They say one thing. They support another. Pillay's policy papers speak louder than disingenuous words.

She blames victims for Kiev putschist crimes. According to Russia's Foreign Ministry, she "justifies the criminal punitive operation in the southeast of Ukraine…"

She "conceals casualties among peaceful civilians…" She irresponsibly blames "pro-Russian forces" for Kiev crimes. For horrific human rights violations.

For state-sponsored terrorism. For war without mercy. For murdering civilians in cold blood. For massacring them in Odessa.

For turning a blind eye to hard facts. For twisting them to fit Washington's agenda.

For "carrying out a political order to whitewash" Kiev putschists' crimes of war and against humanity.

Lugansk People's Front leader Alexiy Chmylenko said Kiev forces massed near Rubizhne and Lisichansk.

"We are receiving information that convoys of armored vehicles have been moving at a high speed to the town of Rubizhne since early morning," he said.

"Apparently, forces are being amassed there." Self defense fighters are watching things closely. They'll resist Ukrainian aggression if launched.

On Friday, Russian presidential commissioner for children's rights Pavel Astakhov said Ukrainian forces targeted Sloviansk residential areas.

Seven children were injured. They had shrapnel and bullet wounds. Expect lots more civilian casualties as long as fighting continues.

On May 30, Voice of Russia headlined "Right Sector militants suspected of plotting terror acts detained in Crimea - Russia's FSB.

They're suspected of planning sabotage and terrorist attacks. According to an FSB press release:

"The main goal of this criminal group was to stage acts of sabotage and terrorist attacks in the cities of Simferopol, Yalta and Sevastopol, as well as subsequently destroy a number of vital facilities such as railway bridges and power transmission lines."

On Thursday, Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) Prime Minister Alexander Borodai said "(e)xplosive bullets are fired and all the banned ammunition is used by the other side."

"(M)ercenaries are fighting for the Ukrainian armed forces, and they employ all possible dirty methods."

Ukrainian armed forces, National Guard and Right Sector extremists arrive daily in Eastern areas.

"The enemy is concentrating large forces and although we know how many of them are in the area, I wouldn't like to disclose the figures, said Borodai."

"Civilians are dying every day and no-one can provide the exact death toll figures as the access to the airport is strictly forbidden at the moment," he added.

"We are unable to carry all the bodies out of there and to say exactly how many people were killed."

On Thursday, Sergey Lavrov urged world leaders to demand all sides of the Ukrainian conflict comply with Geneva agreement terms.

"We do not impose any concrete forms," he said. "But we feel the need for the international community to make concerted efforts," he stressed.

On Thursday, Russia's Foreign Ministry said:

"Yet again we demand the Kiev authorities stop the war of kith-and-kin and start real nation-wide dialogue with all political forces and representatives of the country's regions to search ways for Ukraine to overcome the deepest crisis."

"Russia expresses deep concern due to further escalation of the situation in eastern Ukraine."

On Thursday, Public Broadcasting (PBS) News Hour co-anchor Gwen Ifill interviewed John Kerry.

She asked soft ball questions. She gave him a platform to lie. PBS isn't public. It's government and corporate controlled.

Earlier promises long ago were abandoned. News reporting replicates other scoundrel media.

Misinformation substitutes for hard truths. News, information, and analysis viewers most need to know is suppressed.

Featuring Kerry insulted viewers. He mocks legitimacy. He shames the office he holds.

He lied claiming "evidence of Russians crossing over (into Ukraine) to stir things up, to engage in fighting."

No evidence whatever suggests Russian involvement. Plenty shows Putin, Lavrov and other top officials go all-out for peaceful conflict resolution.

Not according to Kerry. "We hope the Russians would actually engage more proactively in efforts to now try to de-escalate," he said.

Lies infested his interview. Ifill didn't challenge him. Viewers were cheated. Ukraine's war without mercy continues.

Crimes of war and against humanity go unreported. Victims are wrongfully blamed for doing the right thing. How things turn out remain to be seen.

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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book is titled "Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity"

http://www.claritypress.com/Lendman.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com

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