Brawls As Ukraine Split With Crimea Ruled Out

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Pro-Russian demonstrators brawled with supporters of Ukraine’s new interim authorities as the local government ruled out debating splitting from Kiev.

One man died of a heart attack during the brawl with Crimea’s health ministry confirming that an elderly man was dead at the scene “without any traces of bodily injuries.”

“According to initial information from medics, the cause of death was acute cardiac arrest,” the ministry said.

Scuffles erupted as thousands of pro-Moscow residents and Muslim Crimean Tatars backing the new leadership in Kiev held competing rallies outside the regional parliament, amid fears that Ukraine’s pro-Moscow east could push for partition following the weekend ousting of Kremlin-backed president Viktor Yanukovych.

The two sets of demonstrators attacked each other with pepper spray and used batons as police struggled to keep them apart.

Ambulances were called and several demonstrators could be seen nursing minor injuries before crowds started to disperse following appeals from local lawmakers for them to go home.

It came as Ukraine’s interim general prosecutor said Kiev has requested an international arrest warrant for Mr Yanukovych, who is wanted within his own crisis-hit country over the “mass murder’’ of protesters.

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