SLOVIANSK, June 03. /ITAR-TASS/. Kiev-controlled troops are exchanging fire with militia units near the village of Semyonovka off Sloviansk in the Donetsk Region. Militia fighters have punctured several armored personnel carriers, parliament-appointed Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said on Tuesday.

According to Avakov, "militia's roadblocks and engineer works have been destroyed in the Semyonovka area."

"We're moving on. We request the civilians of Sloviansk, Kramatorsk and Krasny Liman to remain in their houses to avoid risks to life," Avakov warned.

A militia representative told ITAR-TASS earlier on Tuesday that warplanes had appeared over Sloviansk.

"The Ukrainian military concentrated fire on the village of Semyonovka, where residents have had no electricity since a power cable was severed on Monday," the representative said. "Automatic fire is heard in different parts of the town. There's a fierce battle going in northeast Sloviansk."