Ukraine Civil War News Updates -- August 19, 2014

Advancing Ukraine Troops Take Fight To Heart Of Pro-Moscow Rebellion -- Reuters

(Reuters) - A gun battle broke out in the center of the rebel-held Ukrainian city of Donetsk and residents ran for cover from artillery fire on Tuesday, taking a government military offensive into the heart of the retreating pro-Moscow separatist rebellion.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart will meet next week for the first time in months to try to end their confrontation over the separatist rebellion in eastern Ukraine, their offices said.

In a prelude to the talks between Putin and Ukraine's Petro Poroshenko, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is to visit the Ukrainian capital Kiev on Saturday, her office said, to show support for the Ukrainian government.

Read more ....

Ukraine Civil War News Updates -- August 19, 2014

'Fighting underway' in center of Ukraine's Luhansk -- Deutsche Welle
'Street fighting' in central Luhansk as Ukrainian army troops advance on rebels -- The Telegraph
Battles 'on the streets of Luhansk' say Ukrainian army -- BBC
Fighting underway in center of rebel-held Ukrainian city of Luhansk: military -- Reuters
Kyiv Says Battle Moves Into Rebel Stronghold Of Luhansk -- Radio Free Europe
Ukraine presses on with offensive -- AFP
Ukraine Says It Makes Gains Against Rebels in Luhansk -- Bloomberg
Rebel Strongholds Continue to Buckle in Eastern Ukraine -- The Wire
Video: Life in under-siege Donetsk -- France 24
Ukraine convoy attack: 'Bodies recovered' in Luhansk -- BBC
Ukraine crisis: 15 bodies found after strike on refugee convoy -- The Guardian
Ukraine military: 17 dead, 6 injured after refugee convoy attack -- CNN
No Weapons Seen Crossing Russian-Ukrainian Border - OSCE -- RIA Novosti
Russia, Red Cross Want to Start Aid Delivering as Soon as Possible -- RIA Novosti
Ukraine says to guarantee security of Russia's humanitarian aid convoy -- Global Post/Xinhua
Russia expects relief aid delivery to start in the next few hours — Churkin -- ITAR-TASS
53,000 Ukraine refugees given shelter in Russia’s Rostov region -- Euronews
Russia begins to resettle all Ukrainian refugees from tent camps by September 1 -- ITAR-TASS
The reshuffling of Ukrainian rebel leaders may be a sign of an important change in tactics -- Rick Noack, Washington Post