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Five Die In Fresh Fighting In Ukraine


Five people have been killed in eastern Ukraine despite the ongoing cease-fire.

The Ukrainian military said on June 1 that three soldiers were killed and four wounded in fighting in the past 24 hours.

It also said two Ukrainian soldiers had been captured outside the village of Maryinka.

According to the pro-Russian rebels, two civilians were killed and five injured in shelling on May 31.

One of the fatalities was reported in the village of Shyrokyne, which has witnessed heavy fighting in recent weeks.

The fresh reports of casualties come as the UN human rights office said the number of people killed in more than a year of fighting in the east has risen to more than 6,400 people.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad al-Hussein said there were "alarming reports of summary executions by armed groups" and his office was "looking into similar allegations against Ukrainian armed forces."

A report on June 1 by the Organization for Cooperation and Security in Europe (OSCE) says its observers heard a total of 253 explosions from the rebel stronghold of Donetsk during 48 hours ending in the evening on May 31.

The explosions, the OSCE said, were "consistent with heavy and light weapons fire" including tanks and large-caliber artillery that should have been withdrawn by now from the front lines in compliance with the cease-fire accords signed last September in the Belarusian capital, Minsk.

Based on reporting by AP and AFP

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