Pro-Russian separatists downed two helicopters in eastern Ukraine while clashes in the southern port city of Odessa sparked a fire that killed 31 people as fighting spread in the nation.
The escalating violence Friday raised the question of whether the country can stave off a possible civil war.
The violence pit pro-Russian separatists against Ukrainian forces and those who support the government in Kiev. It prompted an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council, with Russia demanding an end to what it called Ukrainian aggression and Western powers accusing Moscow of funding the violence.
In eastern Ukraine, the crisis hit a boiling point with news Friday that security forces launched their most intensive effort yet to try to dislodge pro-Russian separatists who have reportedly seized government buildings in nearly a dozen cities and towns, CNN informs.
