Jews have reportedly been told to register with pro-Russian forces in the east Ukrainian city of Donetsk or face deportation.A pamphlet handed out in Donetsk orders 'citizens of Jewish nationality' over the age of 16 to pay $50 to register and be issued special passports 'marking the confession of faith'.The leaflets, a chilling echo of Nazi persecution, were handed out to Jews leaving a local synagogue by three men in ski masks holding the flag of the Russian Federation, Israeli media reports.Jews living in the area of the self-declared 'Donetsk People's Republic' were ordered to register at a government building operated by pro-Russian forces or face the threat of deportation.Secretary of State John Kerry yesterday condemned the leaflets, which recall the days of czarist pogroms and Nazi-era persecution of Jews, calling them ‘grotesque’.Speaking in Geneva after top diplomats from the U.S., European Union, Russia and Ukraine reached agreement on steps to de-escalate the situation, Secretary of State John Kerry denounced the leaflets.‘In the year 2014, after all of the miles traveled and all of the journey of history, this is not just intolerable; it's grotesque,’ Kerry told reporters. ‘It is beyond unacceptable. And any of the people who engage in these kinds of activities, from whatever party or whatever ideology or whatever place they crawl out of, there is no place for that. ‘Kerry also denounced apparent threats to members of the Russian Orthodox Church from members of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. He noted that the agreement signed on Thursday ‘strongly condemned and rejected all expressions of extremism, racism and religious intolerance, including anti-Semitism.’It requires all sides to refrain from violence, intimidation or provocative actions, however,it does not require Russia to withdraw some 40,000 troops massed near the border.As the news of the anti-Semitic leaflet broke, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov promised amnesty to pro-Russian protesters who participated in an uprising against the government in Kiev, except those found guilty of capital crimes. The U.S. State Department said it was looking into who is responsible, but said it took the threat seriously no matter who was behind the leaflets. Although the leaflets were signed by Donetsk People's Republic, a self-styled, unrecognized breakaway authority that seeks to join Russia, its leader denied any involvement in the matter and says the leaflets are fake.In an exclusive interview with MailOnline, Denis Pushilin said today in Donetsk, where he has declared independence from Ukraine: ‘I strongly deny that this document on registering Jewish people is genuine.‘I have never written and signed anything like this, nor orders on food coupons, nor taxes for businessmen nor registration for foreign students, all of which have been reported.‘Those documents are aimed to discredit our people's republic. They are fakes.’Of the order about Jew's being forced to register, or lose their rights to property, he insisted: ‘Look at this document. I have never called myself the people's governor, my job is different.‘The stamp is bigger than it should be because it was Photoshopped from some real document.‘I am personally strongly against any declarations of this sort made against Jewish or any other people. This is a dirty trick by our foes.’According to USA Today, the leaflet says all people of Jewish descent over 16 should report to the Commissioner for Nationalities in the Donetsk Regional Administration building and 'register.'It goes on to explain that the reason for this is that leaders of the Jewish community of Ukraine supported Bendery Junta in reference to the leader of a nationalist group fighting for independence at the end of the Second World War.The letter features the flag of the so-called Donetsk Republic, a self-proclaimed state declared earlier this month by several hundred activists who occupied the Regional Administration Building and the City Hall buildings in the city.Late last night, President Barack Obama said he was sceptical about Russian promises to de-escalate a volatile situation in Ukraine, and said the United States and its allies are ready to impose fresh sanctions if Moscow doesn't make good on its commitments.'My hope is that we actually do see follow-through over the next several days, but I don't think, given past performance, that we can count on that,' President Obama said at an impromptu news conference at the White House a few hours after the end of the meeting in Geneva.'We have to be prepared to potentially respond to what continue to be efforts of interference by the Russians in eastern and southern Ukraine.'The question now becomes, will in fact they use the influence that they've exerted in a disruptive way to restore some order so that Ukrainians can carry out an election, move forward with the decentralization reforms that they've proposed, stabilize their economy and start getting back on the path of growth and democracy and that their sovereignty will be respected?'In March, leaders of Ukraine’s Jewish communities published an open letter denouncing Russian anit-semitism and criticising Putin.The Kiev-based Vaad of Ukraine is an umbrella group that says it supports '265 Jewish organizations from 94 cities of Ukraine'.The letter, written in Russian and co-signed by 21 Jewish leaders — including the Vaad leadership, supports Ukrainian sovereignty 'in the name of national minorities and Ukraine’s Jewish community.'Putin has justified his military action by claiming that he is acting to protect Ukraine’s Russian-speaking population and claims that Ukraine’s new government is composed of 'fascists and neo-Nazis'.But the letter, claiming to represent Russian-speaking Jews, said: 'Your certainty about the growth of anti-Semitism in Ukraine, which you expressed at your press conference, also does not correspond to the actual facts,''Perhaps you got Ukraine confused with Russia, where Jewish organizations have noticed growth in anti-Semitic tendencies last year.'(dailymail.co.uk)BakuDaily.Az