Shells hit Donetsk, five more Ukrainian soldiers killed

ARTILLERY attacks on the Ukrainian city of Donetsk killed at least one civilian Monday, while Kiev’s military reported that five more Ukrainian soldiers had been killed in clashes with separatists in the east in the past 24 hours.

  According to Reuters, municipal authorities in Donetsk said 15 civilians were killed over the weekend by shells, mortars or other missiles that hit residential areas of the city that is controlled by the separatists.

  To the northeast of Donetsk, the Russian-backed rebels kept up attacks to dislodge government forces from the small town of Debaltseve, a strategic rail hub, in fighting which has grown more intense since peace talks collapsed at the weekend.

  Kiev military authorities said separatist forces launched more than a 100 attacks by artillery, rocket systems and tank fire on Ukrainian positions and residential areas in the past 24 hours.

  “As a result of these attacks and military clashes, Ukraine lost five service personnel and another 29 have been wounded,” military spokesman Vyacheslav Seleznyov, said at a morning briefing.

  The crash of artillery fire continued throughout the night coming mainly from the area of the airport, which government forces lost to the separatists a week ago.