U.N.: More than 300 people have been killed during Ukraine ceasefire

The United Nations reported on Wednesday that more than 330 people have died since a ceasefire between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed separatists began last month.

"While the ceasefire is a very welcome step toward ending the fighting in eastern Ukraine, I call on all parties to genuinely respect and uphold it, and to halt the attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure," Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, said in a statement reported by The Associated Press.

Since fighting between government forces and Russia-backed rebels began six months ago, the U.N. estimates that at least 3,660 people have been killed. The hostilities have robbed another five million Ukrainians of employment opportunities, housing, and health care facilities. The U.N. is especially concerned about the approaching winter season; temperatures in Ukraine drop dangerously low for weeks at a time, and at least 93 settlements in eastern Ukraine lack electricity as a result of fighting between the two sides.

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