KIEV, May 9 (AFP):- Fighting broke out Friday in Ukraine's southeastern port city of Mariupol, causing casualties, according to reports by Ukrainian and Russian media.
An online Ukrainian news website, Insider, said eight pro-Russian militants had been killed.
Russia's Interfax news agency said Ukrainian troops used large calibre weapons as they tried to take an occupied government building in the city.
Members of a crew from Britain's ITV News in the city said on Twitter that they saw heavy guns being used and smoke from burning tyres rising above Mariupol.
"Just filmed serious fighting downtown Mariupol. Snipers everywhere. Heavy guns. A man got shot just next to me. Black smoke over the city," wrote cameraman Daniel Demoustier.
Ukrainian military armoured vehicles were seen in the centre of Mariupol.
The fighting occurred as Ukraine commemorated Victory Day celebrations marking the Soviet defeat of German forces in World War II.
Kiev held low-key ceremonies while Russia-which the West accuses of fomenting Ukraine's insurgency-put on a diplay of military might in Moscow's Red Square.
Meanwhile: An overnight fire that damaged cables and cut power to Kiev's television centre raised suspicions among officials on Friday, with one suggesting on her Facebook page it could have been Russian "sabotage".
However the head of the regional administration for Kiev, Volodymyr Bondarenko, said the blaze was most likely started by a short-circuit.
Casualties as fighting breaks out in Ukraine port city of Mariupol
FE Team | Published: May 10, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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