Pro-Russian separatists have planted explosives in a Ukrainian government building and are holding about 60 people, officials say.
Ukraine's state security service (the SBU) said the activists were using "terrorist measures" to hold dozens of people in an SBU building in the eastern city of Luhansk.
In a statement the organisation said: "The anti-terror group of the security services of Ukraine ... has established that the criminals have mined the building ... and are holding around 60 people, threatening them with weapons and explosives.
"These actions are extremely dangerous and endanger the lives of people both inside and outside of the building."
The pro-Russian separatists have been in control of the building since Sunday, resisting police efforts to remove them.
It was among a number of administration buildings to be stormed by protesters across eastern Ukraine over the weekend.
Offices in Donetsk and Kharkiv were also seized, however police say they have driven activists from the regional government headquarters in Kharkiv as part on an "anti-terror" operation.
Ukraine's acting President Oleksandr Turchynov said 70 people were arrested.
Pro-Russian protesters in the east are hoping to follow in the footsteps of Crimea and hold a referendum on joining Russia.
In Donetsk, protesters inside the regional authority building have also declared a separatist republic.
Western leaders have accused Russia of being behind the recent unrest.
On Tuesday US Secretary of State John Kerry said: "It is clear that Russian special forces and agents have been the catalyst behind the chaos of the last 24 hours."
He added that this "could potentially be a contrived pretext for military intervention just as we saw in Crimea."
Russian forces gradually seized control of Ukrainian military bases in Crimea following the ouster of the Kremlin-backed President Viktor Yanukovych in February.
The region then voted to join the Russian Federation with an overwhelming majority.
President Vladimir Putin has vowed to protect the ethnic Russian population in eastern Ukraine.
However he has denied that Russia plans to expand its military presence beyond Crimea.
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