5 killed as Russia pounds eastern Ukraine region of Donetsk

KRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AP) — A Ukrainian official says Russian shelling has killed five civilians over the past 24 hours and wounded 21 more in the eastern Donetsk province, where Russia has stepped up its offensive in recent days. Donetsk’s governor said Wednesday that two people were killed in Avdiivka, one in Sloviansk, one in Krasnohorivka, and one in Kurakhove. He had urged the province’s more than 350,000 residents to flee Tuesday, saying that getting people out of Donetsk is necessary to save lives and enable the Ukrainian army better to defend towns from the Russian advance. Ukrainian officials said Russian forces also hit Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city further to the north, with missile strikes overnight.