Two civilians ‘killed after start of Ukraine ceasefire’

Two civilians were killed by rockets fired by rebels shortly after the start of a ceasefire in east Ukraine Sunday, a pro-Kiev official said. An elderly man and woman died after Grad missile fire hit the town of Popasna in the Luhansk region some 20 minutes after the truce came into force on Saturday night, local governor Gennadiy Moskal said. The firing came from an area that Kiev says is under the command of a renegade group of Cossack fighters who insist they will not obey rebel chief commands to cease fire. The UN Security Council is expected to meet on Sunday for an emergency session to shore up the Ukraine peace deal, diplomats said.

Yesterday and the day before were hot, they were shooting from here and from there. But today is quiet and calm. All is good.

Donetsk resident Rodion Biralyan, 50

The rest of the frontline has mostly fallen silent. Ukraine’s military said its forces had been fired at 10 times overnight but that there had been no incidents reported since 3am, local time (0100 GMT). However, they reported that rebels were still trying to occupy the village of Chornuhine around the key strategic government-held town of Debaltseve. Debaltseve is seen as the more likely potential flashpoint for violence, as pro-Russian rebels battled fiercely to surround Ukranian forces in the hours leading up to the truce.

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