• A woman holds a dog beside a destroyed tank in the courtyard of the local kindergarten in the village of Talakovka, some 22 kilometres northeast of Mariupol, on September 6, 2014, a day after Kiev and pro-Russian rebels signed a ceasefire after five months conflict which has plunged relations between Russia and the West into their worst crisis since the Cold War. . Alexander Khudoteply/AFP Photo
    A woman holds a dog beside a destroyed tank in the courtyard of the local kindergarten in the village of Talakovka, some 22 kilometres northeast of Mariupol, on September 6, 2014, a day after Kiev and pro-Russian rebels signed a ceasefire after five months conflict which has plunged relations between Russia and the West into their worst crisis since the Cold War. . Alexander Khudoteply/AFP Photo
  • Strong explosions were heard early Sunday on the outskirts of the main rebel-held city in eastern Ukraine near the airport, raising new fears that a cease-fire signed two days ago is on the verge of collapse. Sergei Grits /AP Photo
    Strong explosions were heard early Sunday on the outskirts of the main rebel-held city in eastern Ukraine near the airport, raising new fears that a cease-fire signed two days ago is on the verge of collapse. Sergei Grits /AP Photo
  • People look at an impact of shell on September 7, 2014 after an overnight bombing attack, at an Ukrainian army checkpoint in the outskirts of the key southeastern port city of Mariupol. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
    People look at an impact of shell on September 7, 2014 after an overnight bombing attack, at an Ukrainian army checkpoint in the outskirts of the key southeastern port city of Mariupol. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
  • A burnt Ukrainian army truck on September 7, 2014. Numerous explosions rattled the night sky and thick smoke was visible on the horizon of Mariupol, a strategic government-held port city on the Azov Sea in the southeast of the country. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
    A burnt Ukrainian army truck on September 7, 2014. Numerous explosions rattled the night sky and thick smoke was visible on the horizon of Mariupol, a strategic government-held port city on the Azov Sea in the southeast of the country. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
  • Ukraine, Russia and the Kremlin-backed separatists signed the ceasefire deal in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, on Friday in an effort to end more than four months of bloodshed. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
    Ukraine, Russia and the Kremlin-backed separatists signed the ceasefire deal in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, on Friday in an effort to end more than four months of bloodshed. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
  • The negotiators also agreed on the withdrawal of all heavy weaponry, the release of all prisoners and the delivery of humanitarian aid to devastated cities in eastern Ukraine. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
    The negotiators also agreed on the withdrawal of all heavy weaponry, the release of all prisoners and the delivery of humanitarian aid to devastated cities in eastern Ukraine. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
  • But western leaders voiced skepticism over Russia’s commitment to the deal. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
    But western leaders voiced skepticism over Russia’s commitment to the deal. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
  • Fighting between pro-Russian rebels and Ukrainian government troops has ravaged the already teetering Ukrainian economy. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
    Fighting between pro-Russian rebels and Ukrainian government troops has ravaged the already teetering Ukrainian economy. Philippe Desmazes/AFP Photo
  • At least 2,600 civilians have been killed and hundreds of thousands left homeless in the conflict, according to United Nations estimates. Vasily Fedosenko/Reuters
    At least 2,600 civilians have been killed and hundreds of thousands left homeless in the conflict, according to United Nations estimates. Vasily Fedosenko/Reuters

World

In pictures: Ukraine ceasefire hangs in the balance amid renewed fighting

Rob Gurdebeke

September 07, 2014

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Heavy fighting around flashpoint cities in eastern Ukraine on Sunday threatened the collapse of a tenuous truce between government forces and pro-Russian rebels less than 48 hours after it came into force.

UkraineEuropeRussiaVladimir Putin