A pro-Russian separatist, with a kitten on his chest, stands at a checkpoint in the northern outskirts of Donetsk, on Tuesday.
Terrified civilians fled as intense clashes on Monday between Ukrainian government troops and pro-Russian rebels left at least four people dead on the outskirts of insurgent-held Donetsk. A military spokesman said yesterday that government troops were battling back control of the districts around the airport and had broken through the rebel cordon to reach their comrades inside.