Two killed in east Ukraine ammunition depot explosions
Several explosions at an ammunition depot have killed two civilians and injured eight others in eastern Ukraine.
"According to the latest information, two civilians were killed and another eight people were injured" in the blasts in the government-held city of Svatove, about 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Lugansk, regional military spokesman Ruslan Tkachuk told AFP on Friday.
Four of the wounded were soldiers, he added.
On Thursday, a fire started at the depot, for unspecified reasons, causing the munitions to blow up in separate blasts during the evening, the Kiev military spokesman colonel Oleksandr Motuzyanyk told AFP.
Officials said the fire at the huge munitions warehouse had not been contained yet and the danger zone has been cordoned off with security forces and rescue workers on high alert.
Soldiers in a nearby military base and civilians living in the area have been evacuated from the region as well.
Local media said the government warehouses in Svatove hold some 3,500 tons of ammunition, including missile systems such as Grad, Hurricane and Smerch.
In eastern Ukraine, government forces have been battling pro-Russia fighters for over a year and a half.
A renewed truce deal, known as the Minsk agreement, was agreed upon between the two sides two months ago, which has calmed the fighting.
On September 1, the warring sides pledged anew to implement the ceasefire agreement reached in the Belorussian capital city of Minsk in February.
The most crucial part of the Minsk agreement is that the Russian-speaking regions of Donetsk and Lugansk will be granted more autonomy from Kiev through local elections.
About 8,000 people have been killed in the Ukrainian conflict, according to the UN.
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