Later that day, the first reports came in of fighting between the people's militia and Ukrainian troops near Sloviansk, with casualties on both sides. On 13 April, the newly established Ukrainian government gave the separatists a deadline to disarm or face a "full-scale anti-terrorist campaign" in the region. The same day, former members of the Donetsk " Berkut" unit joined the ranks of the Donbas People's Militia. On 12 April, the supporters of the Donetsk People's Republic and members of Donbas People's Militia set up checkpoints and barricades in Sloviansk. Within a few days, several government buildings in cities such as Kramatorsk and Sloviansk were also stormed. The groups created a people's council and demanded a referendum like the one held in Crimea. On the same day, groups of protesters in Eastern Ukraine stormed the regional administration building in Kharkiv, and the SBU headquarters in Luhansk. On 6 April 2014, 2,000 pro-Russian protesters rallied outside the regional administration building. This happened when 11 Ukrainian cities with significant populations of ethnic Russians erupted in demonstrations against the new Ukrainian government. A newly created armed opposition group named the Donbas People's Militia, led by Pavel Gubarev, participated. On 3 March 2014, during the 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine, groups of protesters took control of the regional administration building in Donetsk. Pro-Russian rally in Donetsk on April 6, 2014 It is alleged that since September 2015, the separatist units, at the battalion level and up, are acting under direct command of Russian Army officers, with former local commanders sometimes serving as their deputies. DPR head Alexander Zakharchenko claimed in August 2014 that there were around 3,000 to 4,000 Russian volunteers fighting for his militia, which included serving and retired Russian Army servicemen. Registered Cossacks of the Russian Federation are also supporting the separatists. BBC reported that separatist ranks are composed of thousands of Russian citizens. The separatists have admitted receiving supplies from Russia and being trained there. Although the Russian government often denies direct involvement, saying their soldiers were there voluntarily and not under orders, some of them have been captured with documents that said otherwise. Ukraine, the United States, and some analysts consider 1st and 2nd Army Corps to be Russian formations under the command of the 8th Combined Arms Army, which was formed in 2017 in Novocherkassk, Rostov Oblast. It is widely believed that the separatists are supported by the Russian Armed Forces. However, the Novorossiya project was suspended in May 2015. The two militias became the DPR 1st Army Corps and LPR 2nd Army Corps. In September 2014, the militias of the Donetsk and Luhansk republics merged under the umbrella of the United Armed Forces of Novorossiya ( Russian: Объединённые Вооруженные Силы Новороссии acronym NAF), which was to be affiliated with the unrecognized political union of Novorossiya (New Russia). The militias were accused by the Ukrainian government of culpability in shooting down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in July 2014, but the separatist leaders denied it. Tensions increased to the point of the Ukrainian government launching the Anti-Terrorist Operation against the militias, triggering the War in Donbas. They were originally involved in taking control of Ukrainian government buildings in the oblasts. The Army of the South-East was formed in April 2014 in Luhansk Oblast. The Donbas People's Militia was formed in March 2014 by Pavel Gubarev, who was elected "People's Governor" of Donetsk Oblast. They are designated as terrorist groups by the Government of Ukraine. The main groups are the Donetsk People's Militia and Luhansk People's Militia, which have been fighting the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Russo-Ukrainian War. Russian separatist forces in Donets Basin are militias and armed volunteer groups affiliated with the Russian-recognized regimes in the occupied territories of the Donbas region of Ukraine: the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and Luhansk People's Republic (LPR). Commanders of the People's Militia Directorate
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