Gunfire in Key Ukraine City
COOPER: There is breaking news tonight in Eastern Ukraine, gunfire in the key city of Donetsk, a Russian-rebel stronghold. The question is will it stay that way? Ukrainian officials could be launching a major offensive. All this as NATO says some 20,000 Russian troops have gathered along the Ukraine border. Our Nick Paton Walsh is in Donetsk tonight, taking cover, I spoke to him a short time before we went on air.</s>COOPER: Nick, it looks like you're lighting your own shot. What is going on right now on the ground?</s>NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Forgive me for whispering, Anderson, but it's so quiet here in Central Donetsk, we have to keep our voices down. But intermittently, we've heard heavy gunfire now in what looks like the very center of Donetsk. It seems like an exchange of fire. RPTs being used too. That comes after a day in which the Ukrainian military have been advancing mostly from the direction over my shoulder here. The last few hours, explosions have been on the skyline to the distance over there, but the key change just in the last half an hour, we've heard sustained automatic gunfire here in Central Donetsk. A real sign I think the militants must be either extraordinary edgy or perhaps in the worst situation, any exchange of gunfire with the Ukrainian military, if they are, in fact, this close -- Anderson.</s>COOPER: How close is the firing to you, Nick?</s>WALSH: It's a two, three blocks away maximum pretty close indeed. We are pretty much in the very center of Donetsk here. The militants have been filling out in the past few days. We drove in yesterday it was clear. They were retreating down back one of the main highways here into Central Donetsk. That matches with what we've seen about Ukrainian military positions moving fast towards the city center. The question really is, Anderson, as we know is a doubling in the number of Russian troops on the border here to about 20,000 in the last week. Does that suggest Moscow wants to intervene to assist the separatist militants? It's backed thus far or are we looking at a separatist movement which is in the last stages as the Ukrainian military advances -- Anderson.</s>COOPER: Your location is known obviously to the pro-Russian rebels, is it known to any Ukraine forces who might be coming into town?</s>WALSH: As far as we know, yes. It's pretty well-known location where there are other organizations, as well. So -- I'm hearing some voices in the distance, so I'm keeping my voice down but yes, as far as we're aware, this is a pretty well-known location -- Anderson.</s>COOPER: Nick, finally, investigators are still recovering remains and personal belongings from the crash site, correct? They are still able to do their work?</s>WALSH: That's correct, yes. We understand one from one official close to the investigation that, in fact, the Ukrainian and rebel front lines are now adjacent to a vital part of the debris effectively salvaging it in a no-man's land between their front lines. Today that has severely impeded the ability of the investigators to carry out their job. One of them telling me, in fact, they had to slow because rebels were in fact telling them they couldn't advance because mines were in the way -- Anderson.</s>COOPER: Nick, I'll let you go. Be careful, Nick, thank you.</s>COOPER: We spoke to Nick just before the broadcast. We're very concerned about his safety and the safety of those in harm's way tonight and we'll continue to maintain contact. For more on the story and others, you can go to cnn.com. Coming up ahead, a second America Ebola patient arrives in the United States for treatment at Atlanta's Emory University Hospital. The latest on her condition with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and we're also Dr. Anthony Fauci ahead.