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UKRAINE-RUSSIA-CONFLICT
Four Ukrainian soldiers killed in rebel east
KIEV, June 29, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Four Ukrainian soldiers died and two were
wounded two days before an agreed ceasefire between Kiev and Russian-backed
separatists comes into force, the Ukrainian army said Friday.
The casualties became the heaviest daily toll over the past month in the
fighting along the volatile frontline. Separatist forces used heavy weaponry,
including artillery and mortars, the Ukrainian military charged.
“During the last 24 hours, the fighting took place along the entire
frontline,” military spokesman Oleksandr Motuzyanyk told journalists.
The deaths ahead of a fresh ceasefire to start on Sunday.
A series of periodic truce deals have helped lower the level of violence
in two breakaway provinces in Ukraine’s industrial east but have not fully
ended the bloodshed.
More than 10,000 people have been killed since the Moscow-backed
insurgency broke out in April 2014 following Russia’s annexation of Crimea
from Ukraine.
Ukraine and its Western allies accuse Russia of funnelling troops and arms
across the border to fan the flames of the conflict.
Moscow has denied the allegations despite overwhelming evidence that it
has been involved in the fighting and its explicit political support for the
rebels.
BSS/AFP/RY/1750 hrs