A convoy transporting refugees in eastern Ukraine was struck by rockets, killing several people in an attack that Ukraine's military has blamed on pro-Russian rebels.
Mortars and grad rockets struck the refugee convoy as it traveled on a road near the village of Novosvitlivka after leaving the eastern Luhansk region, military spokesman Andriy Lysenko told the BBC on Monday.
"Many people have been killed, including women and children," Lysenko said.
Some of the refugees were burned alive when the rockets struck the vehicles, another spokesman said. It is not yet clear how many were killed.
Ukraine said pro-Russian "militants" that have overrun the region carried out the attack with weapons supplied by Russia.
Rebels have denied responsibility for the attack, placing the blame on Ukrainian forces.
"The Ukrainians themselves have bombed the road constantly with planes and Grads," Andrei Purgin, a rebel from the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People's Republic," said according to the BBC. "It seems they've now killed more civilians like they've been doing for months now."
Fighting between separatists and government troops in eastern Ukraine has killed over 2,000 civilians since April. The number of deaths nearly doubled during the month of July when Ukraine's military intensified their efforts against the rebel uprising, Reuters reported.
Ukrainian forces have slowly been able to quash the insurgency, pushing the opposition back to their strongholds in Donetsk and Luhansk. But thousands of civilians have been displaced and are suffering without food, water and electricity, the BBC reported.
Ukraine has accused Russia of supporting the rebel uprising throughout the conflict, a claim Moscow vehemently denies.
A convoy of some 300 trucks with humanitarian aid Russia sent to Ukraine was stalled at the border out of fear it was an invasion in disguise. The trucks are currently stationed at a base near a rebel-controlled part of the Ukraine border, where they await Ukraine and the Red Cross to decide how it is to be securely distributed.
Negotiations for a ceasefire have been underway between Russia, Ukraine, German and French officials, Reuters reported. But as of Monday no deal has been reached.
