At least 10 killed in fresh clashes in E. Ukraine

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A total of 10 people were confirmed dead and dozens wounded over the past day in running battles between Ukrainian troops and independence-seeking forces in Ukraine's restive east, reports showed Wednesday.

Heavy artillery fire rocked a small town of Stakhanov in Lugansk region on Wednesday morning, killing at least three civilians and wounding 12 others, local health authorities said.

Meanwhile, local media citing their sources estimated the number of deaths in the shelling, which lasted four hours, between four and 10 people, though this information was not confirmed by officials.

The escalation of hostilities was also reported in the strategic flashpoint of fighting, the city of Donetsk, where five civilians were killed and 29 injured since Tuesday.

Donetsk municipal council reported "massive damage" to private property, public infrastructure and communications of the city following the overnight violence.

Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko told reporters that the situation in the combat area remained tense as insurgents continued the attempts to widen the radius of territories they control.

"Over the past 24 hours, one Ukrainian soldier has been killed and 40 were wounded in clashes," Lysenko said during a briefing.

The self-styled leader of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People's Republic, Igor Plotnytsky, said that an insurgent fighter was killed in latest battles with government troops.

The intensification of the fighting in eastern Ukraine began two weeks ago after insurgents launched an offensive to seize the government-controlled airport in Donetsk.

The warring sides in the conflict, which has killed over 4,800 people since mid-April, are repeatedly blaming each other for not complying with a ceasefire deal signed in September and shelling in residential areas of the conflict-torn cities and towns.

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