KIEV
At least six soldiers have been killed in clashes with pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine in the past 24 hours, military officials said.
Counterterrorism Center spokesman Andrey Lisenko said Friday that 18 soldiers had been injured in clashes with pro-Russian separatists in Donetsk, where the fighting has intensified in the last days.
Lisenko said that during last 24 hours pro-Russian separatists had violated the agreed upon cease-fire 82 times. He said that fighting continued at Donetsk airport, which is controlled by the Ukrainian army.
At least 4,707 people have been killed and 10,322 have been wounded in the conflict between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine since mid-April 2014, according to the U.N.
Kiev and pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine signed a cease-fire agreement on Sept. 5. The agreement, however, has not been respected. At least 1,357 fatalities have been recorded since then.
On Tuesday, a bus carrying passengers from separatist-controlled territory was hit by an artillery rocket, killing 13 civilians and injuring 18 others.
In the aftermath, the Russian Foreign Ministry condemned the attack, suggesting that it was provocation, aimed at re-igniting the conflict in the east of Ukraine.
Separately, Kiev declared Thursday a day of national mourning, with Ukrainian president, Petro Pososhenko saying that civilians had “died at the hands of terrorists”.
