DONETSK, Ukraine (AP) – At least three people have been killed in the separatist-controlled city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine as the government intensifies its shelling campaign.
Associated Press reporters saw two bodies lying in a street Wednesday morning in the city’s southwestern Petrovsky district, 11 hours after the rocket fire ended. The city government reported three deaths.
Residents said the intermittent artillery barrage lasted around two hours. One high-rise building appeared to have been struck five times.
City authorities said 10 residential buildings and the wing of a hospital were struck.
Government troops have laid siege to Donetsk and nearby rebel holdings in their push to quash the pro-Russian insurgency. They have largely refrained from street-to-street fighting, favoring often inaccurate rocket fire.
Large parts of the city are without electricity and gas.