OSCE observers freed in eastern Ukraine: media

Ukraine Crisis

KIEV - Four observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation of Europe (OSCE) held by armed activists in eastern Ukraine have been released, local media said Friday.

"A group of four representatives of the OSCE was detained a few days ago and taken to Lugansk for document checks. When it was confirmed that they are indeed representatives of the international organization, not involved in provocation, we just decided to warn them against travelling without proper documentation," Interfax news agency quoted the self-styled leader of the "People's Front" in Lugansk region Alexei Chmilenko as saying.

Chmilenko said the observers had been released and provided with all kinds of assistance.

The OSCE said Tuesday it had lost contact with the four-person monitoring team, which was on an observing mission near Ukraine's Donetsk.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said the team, comprising a Turk, an Estonian, a Dane and a Swiss, was detained by activists.

In April, rebels detained a group of OSCE military observers, mostly from Europe, in Donetsk region for a week.