Ukraine war: Russians accused of opening fire despite Putin’s unilateral truce - BBC

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Damaged buildings successful  KramatorskImage source, Kramatorsk City Council

Image caption,

Fourteen buildings were damaged by Russian missiles connected Friday, according to Ukrainian officials

By Alexandra Fouché

BBC News

A unilateral ceasefire called by Vladimir Putin appears to person had small effect connected the ground, with Ukrainian officials accusing Russians of opening occurrence successful respective areas.

A Ukrainian rescue idiosyncratic was killed successful a Russian strike, portion Russian authorities TV said the metropolis of Donetsk was hit.

Russia ordered a 36-hour unilateral ceasefire, to coincide with the Orthodox Christmas.

Ukraine rejected it saying Moscow mightiness usage it to reenforce troops.

Russia's defence ministry insisted it was observing the truce on the full "line of contact", starting astatine 12:00 Moscow clip (09:00 GMT) connected Friday.

It said its forces had lone returned fired during the ceasefire erstwhile the Ukrainian service had attacked Russian positions.

Air alerts were reported crossed Ukraine soon aft the purported truce began, and past the politician of Kherson portion said a onslaught connected a occurrence presumption near rescuer dormant and 4 different radical wounded successful the main city, liberated successful November by Ukrainian forces.

The eastbound metropolis of Kramatorsk besides came nether onslaught and much than a twelve buildings were damaged, Ukrainian officials said.

Luhansk determination person Serhiy Haidai warned that Russia's Christmas truce was "a prevarication and a trap", advising residents not to be Orthodox Church services oregon stitchery successful crowded places arsenic the Russians could program "terrorist attacks".

Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko warned that overnight temperatures successful the superior would driblet to -11C and called for energy to beryllium cautiously used.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said the truce was an effort to halt his country's subject advances successful the eastbound of the country, and bring successful much men and equipment.

Artillery occurrence could beryllium heard connected some sides of the beforehand enactment successful the eastbound metropolis of Bakhmut, wherever Russian forces person concentrated overmuch of their firepower successful an effort to propulsion westbound towards Kramatorsk.

Russia's Wagner mercenary radical leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said this week that Ukrainians had turned each location successful the metropolis into a fortress. Satellite images released connected Friday revealed the effects of the conflict since past August.

Although Russian officials insisted the truce remained intact, determination was nary denotation of immoderate important lull successful fighting.

"We are 2 and a fractional hours into this proclaimed ceasefire, and really the full territory of Ukraine is nether aerial raid alert. So I deliberation that speaks for itself," Ukrainian MP Inna Sovsun told the BBC. "Basically the ceasefire, the Russians are making it up."

The Russian Orthodox Church - the largest of the Eastern Orthodox Churches - celebrates Christmas Day connected 7 January, according to the Julian calendar.

Some radical successful Ukraine observe Christmas connected 25 December, others connected 7 January. Both days are nationalist holidays successful the country.

This year, for the archetypal time, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine said it would let its congregations to observe Christmas connected 25 December, arsenic bash immoderate different denominations successful occidental Ukraine.

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