Humanitarian truce agreed around key Ukraine town

DONETSK - Ukraine government officials and pro-Russian separatists said Friday they had agreed a brief humanitarian truce around the battleground east Ukrainian town of Debaltseve so besieged civilians can leave.

"They have agreed a truce for Friday in the area around Debaltseve for the evacuation of the civilian population," Ukraine interior ministry official Vyacheslav Abroskin told AFP.

Rebels told their news agency that the truce around the town they have almost encircled would last from 0800 GMT to 1500 GMT on Friday.

Debaltseve is a key railway hub between the two rebel strongholds of Lugansk and Donetsk that the separatists have been pounding with artillery for days, while Ukrainian forces retain control of one road out that has also been targeted.

Amnesty International said earlier this week that most of the town's former population of 25,000 had fled, but that around 7,000 civilians remained trapped.

An AFP journalist headed to Debaltseve said the area seemed unusually quiet and that he could see more cars leaving than in recent days.

The truce comes as European leaders are set to take a new peace plan to Moscow, which is allegedly backing the bloody 10-month uprising that has killed over 5,300 people.

AFP