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Ukraine Rebels Reportedly Make Cease-Fire Offer

Amid reports that Ukraine army forces are closing in on rebel-held Donetsk, the leader of the separatist insurgents says his fighters would accept a cease-fire to avoid a looming humanitarian crisis.

The Associated Press says:

"There was no immediate government response to the statement Saturday from Aleksandr Zakharchenko, the so-called prime minister of the Donetsk separatists."The thunder of artillery reverberated through the nearly deserted streets of Donetsk, the largest rebel-held city."

The BBC quotes the pro-Russian rebels' military commander, Igor Girkin, as saying his forces have been cut off after Krasnyi Luch, a strategic town in eastern Ukraine, had been captured by the army. Girkin referred to the rebel forces who were supposed to defend the town as "cossacks" who had "run away."

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"Commenting on the news from Krasnyi Luch, Donetsk rebel official Andrei Purgin told Russia's Itar-Tass news agency there were still two corridors out of the city of one million people - through the town of Makiivka and the local power station."Meanwhile, in the city of Luhansk, second only to Donetsk in its importance to the rebels, there are fears of a humanitarian disaster."The city council reported on its website (in Russian) on Saturday that the city of 425,000 people had been without electricity and power for a week. Mobile phones and land lines were not working, it said."

According to the AP:

"Russia, which the Ukrainian government and Western countries allege is supporting the rebels, has called repeatedly for a humanitarian mission into eastern Ukraine. But Kiev and the West suggest that could be just a pretext to send in Russian forces."Zakharchenko's statement could be aimed at increasing the international pressure to allow in a Russian mission."

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