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| At Least 19 Killed in Fighting in Eastern Ukraine | At Least 19 Killed in Fighting in Eastern Ukraine |
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| MARIUPOL, Ukraine — Fighting broke out Wednesday between separatist forces and Ukrainian soldiers on the outskirts of Donetsk, in eastern Ukraine, killing at least 19 people, officials from both sides said, and threatening an already fragile cease-fire. | |
| Through the day, a seesaw battle was waged with tanks and rocket launchers for control of two small towns, Maryinka and Krasnohorivka, held by the government. Medics reported Ukrainian forces reeling in bloody and chaotic street fighting, and Ukrainian television said 25 soldiers had been wounded. | Through the day, a seesaw battle was waged with tanks and rocket launchers for control of two small towns, Maryinka and Krasnohorivka, held by the government. Medics reported Ukrainian forces reeling in bloody and chaotic street fighting, and Ukrainian television said 25 soldiers had been wounded. |
| Under a peace accord known as the Minsk II agreement, for the city in Belarus where it was signed in February, heavy weapons like tanks and launchers were supposed to have been pulled back from the front. The cease-fire, one element of that agreement, has proved to be shaky, with low-grade fighting flaring up sporadically in contested areas. | |
| Witnesses reported booms and heavy smoke rising from the towns, and Ukrainian officials were discussing whether it meant that the war, in abeyance for a few months now, had resumed in full again. | Witnesses reported booms and heavy smoke rising from the towns, and Ukrainian officials were discussing whether it meant that the war, in abeyance for a few months now, had resumed in full again. |
| The rebel minister of defense, Vladimir Kononov, said 15 separatist fighters and civilians had been killed. An adviser to President Petro O. Poroshenko of Ukraine, Yuri Biryukov, said three Ukrainian soldiers had been killed, while a local official in Dnepropetrovsk, another city in eastern Ukraine, said one civilian had been killed there. | The rebel minister of defense, Vladimir Kononov, said 15 separatist fighters and civilians had been killed. An adviser to President Petro O. Poroshenko of Ukraine, Yuri Biryukov, said three Ukrainian soldiers had been killed, while a local official in Dnepropetrovsk, another city in eastern Ukraine, said one civilian had been killed there. |
| Authorities in Kiev, the Ukrainian capital, said the rebels struck first with a surprise attack that began with an artillery bombardment around 3 a.m. | Authorities in Kiev, the Ukrainian capital, said the rebels struck first with a surprise attack that began with an artillery bombardment around 3 a.m. |
| As the sun came up, an infantry and tank assault on the town ensued, Ukrainian officials said. | As the sun came up, an infantry and tank assault on the town ensued, Ukrainian officials said. |
| “Krasnohorivka and Maryinka are in flames,” Yevhen Deydey, a Ukrainian member of Parliament and former commander of the Kiev-1 volunteer battalion, posted on Facebook. “All along the line close combat is taking place. Fighters are trying to break through.” | “Krasnohorivka and Maryinka are in flames,” Yevhen Deydey, a Ukrainian member of Parliament and former commander of the Kiev-1 volunteer battalion, posted on Facebook. “All along the line close combat is taking place. Fighters are trying to break through.” |
| Separatist leaders denied that they had attacked, and a rebel spokesman said the Ukrainian military had withdrawn from Maryinka on its own. | |
| By evening, it was unclear whether Ukraine’s military had lost the towns. At one point, Mr. Deydey wrote on Facebook that Maryinka had been “70 percent” captured by separatists. | By evening, it was unclear whether Ukraine’s military had lost the towns. At one point, Mr. Deydey wrote on Facebook that Maryinka had been “70 percent” captured by separatists. |
| Later, though, Ukrainian military authorities said a cease-fire had silenced the guns and restored government control in the area. | Later, though, Ukrainian military authorities said a cease-fire had silenced the guns and restored government control in the area. |
| Maryinka, though an eerie ghost town after heavy fighting last summer, is strategic because it lies along the main access road for civilian traffic into Donetsk. | |
| If Maryinka is captured, it will become the most significant territorial advance by the Russian-backed separatists since their forces surrounded and then overran the town of Debaltseve in February. | |
| In the fighting on Wednesday, stray artillery shells knocked out electricity to two coal mines in rebel-held territory, trapping at least 350 miners underground before they were rescued later in the day. | In the fighting on Wednesday, stray artillery shells knocked out electricity to two coal mines in rebel-held territory, trapping at least 350 miners underground before they were rescued later in the day. |
| The Ukrainian general military staff said in a statement that Russian-backed forces had deployed at least 1,000 fighters, 10 tanks and self-propelled artillery in the assault on Maryinka. | The Ukrainian general military staff said in a statement that Russian-backed forces had deployed at least 1,000 fighters, 10 tanks and self-propelled artillery in the assault on Maryinka. |
| The statement said Ukraine had informed the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which is monitoring the cease-fire, that the military was moving artillery and heavy weapons withdrawn from the front under the February accord back within range, to join the fight. | The statement said Ukraine had informed the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which is monitoring the cease-fire, that the military was moving artillery and heavy weapons withdrawn from the front under the February accord back within range, to join the fight. |
| “To halt the enemy assault and avoid losses of soldiers, the Ukrainian command warned all international partners that it was forced to use artillery,” the statement said. | “To halt the enemy assault and avoid losses of soldiers, the Ukrainian command warned all international partners that it was forced to use artillery,” the statement said. |
| The attack began hours after talks scheduled for Tuesday on carrying out other elements of the Minsk agreement had broken down, though without signifying any broader abandonment of the deal. By midafternoon, Ukrainian officials were issuing contradictory assessments of the combat, with some suggesting a significant breakdown in the cease-fire and others not. | |
| Andriy Lysenko, the Ukrainian military spokesman, said at a briefing in Kiev that the fighting, while grave, was not a “wide-scale attack” on government positions. | Andriy Lysenko, the Ukrainian military spokesman, said at a briefing in Kiev that the fighting, while grave, was not a “wide-scale attack” on government positions. |
| “We see engagements every day and night,” he said. “This advance and attack is taking place on a narrow front.” | |
| Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, speaking during a visit to a base where American soldiers are training members of the Ukrainian National Guard, said Russia had violated the Minsk accord by ordering the attack after negotiations foundered. | Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, speaking during a visit to a base where American soldiers are training members of the Ukrainian National Guard, said Russia had violated the Minsk accord by ordering the attack after negotiations foundered. |
| “Russia yesterday broke up the trilateral meeting, and today gave an order to its terrorists to begin a military operation,” he said. “This is another challenge for the world community.” | |