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Ukraine Accuses Russia-Backed Separatists Of Breaking Easter Cease-Fire


One Ukrainian soldier has been killed and several troops wounded in Ukraine’s east, the Ukrainian government said on May 1.

Both Russia-backed separatists and Kyiv’s forces in eastern Ukraine agreed to observe a cease-fire with the start of the Orthodox Easter and May Day holidays.

The cease-fire was supposed to go into effect at midnight on April 30.

Oleksandr Motuzyanyk, a spokesman for Ukraine's operation in the east, said that separatists shelled the army’s positions overnight at several locations, including the suburbs of Donetsk.

The separatist mouthpiece Donetsk News Agency reported shelling by government forces prior to the midnight deadline.

The two-year war has now killed more than 9,300 people as the sides trade blame for violating the truce.

Based on reporting by AP

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