Ukraine Crisis: Sloviansk Rebels Down Army Helicopters
Sarah Rainsford in Donetsk says the scale of clashes on the ground is not yet clear
Pro-Russian rebels have shot down two of Ukraine's army helicopters during an "anti-terror" operation in the eastern city of Sloviansk, Kiev says.
Ukraine's military said a pilot and serviceman were killed and nine rebel checkpoints seized.
However, separatists at three Sloviansk checkpoints told the BBC they were still in control there.
Russia says Kiev's actions "killed the last hope" for a deal agreed last month in Geneva aimed at defusing the crisis.
President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov also described Ukraine's operation as "punitive".
And Mr Peskov said that contact had been lost with Russian envoy Vladimir Lukin sent to the south-eastern Ukraine.
Russia's foreign ministry earlier warned that any assaults by Ukraine's troops in the region would have "catastrophic consequences", triggering fears of an invasion by Moscow.
Separately, reports are coming that several foreign journalists have been detained in Sloviansk.
Sloviansk is a stronghold for pro-Russian separatists who are exerting increasing control in the region.
'Full combat alert'
In a statement on Friday , Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said the "active phase" of the operation began at 04:30 local time (02:30 GMT).
Ukrainian government troops reportedly destroyed nine rebel checkpoints
Military helicopters were involved in the "anti-terror" operations
The rebels claimed they were still in control of some of their checkpoints
He said interior troops and the National Guard were involved in the operation in the Sloviansk-Kramatorsk region.
"The terrorists opened fire with heavy weapons against Ukrainian special units.
"A real battle with professional mercenaries is going on," Mr Avakov said, adding that the separatists were using the tactics of hiding behind civilians in residential buildings.
Russia's state-run Rossiya 24 TV channel said the city was being "stormed".
It quoted Sloviansk's rebel leader Igor Strelkov as saying that the city was completely sealed off.
The fighting appears to be concentrating on the periphery of the city, says the BBC's Sarah Rainsford, who is in the regional capital Donetsk.
However, there were no reports of Ukrainian government troops entering the city itself.
Local residents were later quoted as saying that the situation in the city calmed down but remained tense.
Earlier, Ukraine's acting President Olexandr Turchynov reinstated military conscription.
Mr Turchynov said his forces were "helpless" to quell the unrest in some parts of the east, saying the goal was now to prevent it from spreading.
He also said Ukraine was on "full combat alert" amid fears that Russian troops could invade.
Some 40,000 Russian troops are stationed near the Ukrainian border.
Monitors held
Eastern Ukraine has a large Russian-speaking population and was a stronghold for President Viktor Yanukovych before he was overthrown by pro-Western protesters in February.
Russia then annexed the Crimean peninsula - part of Ukraine but with a Russian-speaking majority - in a move that provoked international outrage.
The crisis has plunged East-West relations to their lowest point since the Cold War ended in the early 1990s.
On Thursday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel asked Russia in a phone call to President Putin to help free foreign military monitors seized by rebels in Slovianks last week.
For his part, Mr Putin reiterated his call for Kiev to withdraw troops from the south-east to open the way for a national dialogue.
Mrs Merkel is due to meet US President Barack Obama in Washington on Friday to discuss the crisis in Ukraine.
Source:bbc.co.uk
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