DONETSK/MARIUPOL Ukraine A woman died and at least four people were wounded when fighting flared again in eastern Ukraine overnight into Sunday, jeopardizing a ceasefire struck less than two days earlier between Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russian separatists. 
 
 The accord, brokered by envoys from Ukraine, the separatist leadership, Russia and Europe's OSCE security watchdog, is part of a peace plan intended to end a five-month conflict that has killed nearly 3,000 people and caused the sharpest confrontation between Russia and the West since the Cold War. 
 
 Shelling resumed near the port of Mariupol on the Sea of Azov late on Saturday, just hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko had agreed in a phone call that the truce was holding. 
 
 Fighting also broke out early on Sunday on the northern outskirts of rebel-held Donetsk, the region's industrial hub. A Reuters reporter saw plumes of black smoke filling the sky near the airport, which has been in the hands of government forces. 
 
 "Listen to the sound of the ceasefire," joked one armed rebel. "There's a proper battle going on there." 
 
 The two cities then turned quiet for much of Sunday, but a Reuters witness in the early evening reported several mortar blasts within the city confines of Donetsk. They damaged a bridge where the rebels had erected a roadblock. 
 
 In a new report on the conflict, Amnesty International accused both the rebels and Ukrainian militia of war crimes and it published satellite images it said showed a build-up of Russian armor and artillery in eastern Ukraine. 
 
 "Our evidence shows that Russia is fuelling the conflict, both through direct interference and by supporting the separatists in the east. Russia must stop the steady flow of weapons and other support to an insurgent force heavily implicated in gross human rights violations," Amnesty's secretary-general, Salil Shetty, said in a statement. 
 
 Moscow denies dispatching forces or arming the rebels despite what NATO says is overwhelming evidence to the contrary. 
 
 WESTERN ARMS - OR NOT? 
 
 Poroshenko spent Thursday and Friday at a NATO summit in Wales at which U.S. President Barack Obama and other leaders urged Putin to pull forces out of Ukraine. NATO also approved wide-ranging plans to boost its defenses in Eastern Europe in response to the Ukraine crisis. 
 
 A senior aide to Poroshenko, Yuri Lytsenko, wrote on his Facebook page on Sunday that Kiev had reached agreement at the summit on receiving weapons and military advisers from five allies - the United States, France, Italy, Poland and Norway. 
 
 He gave no further details, but four of the five countries denied offering such assistance. 
 
 A senior Obama administration said the United States "has not changed policy" toward Ukraine, which thus far has been to provide only non-lethal military assistance. 
 
 The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, did not appear to rule out the possibility that Washington might at some point choose to offer arms to Kiev. 
 
 The official said the United States had so far given $70 million in security assistance to Ukraine and noted that U.S. President Barack Obama had said he was "looking at what more we can do." 
 
 Officials in Italy, Norway and Poland issued similar denials. 
 
 "Italy, along with other EU and NATO countries, is preparing a package of non-lethal military aid such as bullet-proof vests and helmets for Ukraine," an official at Italy's Defence Ministry said. 
 
 In France, an aide at the president's Elysee Palace declined to comment. 
 
 NATO officials have said the alliance will not send arms to non-member Ukraine, but they have also said individual allies may do so if they wish. A NATO official contacted by Reuters on Sunday about the Lytsenko comment reiterated that line. 
 
 Russia is fiercely opposed to closer ties between Ukraine and the NATO alliance. 
 
 The Ukraine conflict has revived talk of a new Cold War as the West accuses Putin of deliberately destabilizing the former Soviet republic of 46 million people. Ukraine's prime minister accused Putin of striving to recreate the Soviet Union. 
 
 Putin says he is defending the interests of ethnic Russians facing discrimination and oppression in Ukraine since protesters toppled Kiev's pro-Russian president in February. 
 
 Putin has seen his popularity in Russia soar since Moscow annexed Ukraine's Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which has a Russian majority, in March. 
 
 MUTUAL RECRIMINATIONS 
 
 Both the rebels and the Ukrainian military insisted on Sunday they were strictly observing the ceasefire and blamed their opponents for any violations. 
 
 "As far as I know, the Ukrainian side is not observing the ceasefire. We have wounded on our side at various points. We are observing the ceasefire," Vladimir Antyufeyev, deputy premier of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People's Republic", told Reuters. 
 
 Earlier, government forces said they had come under artillery fire east of Mariupol, a crucial port for Ukrainian steel exports. In the days before the ceasefire, they had been trying to repel a big rebel offensive against the city. 
 
 The shelling in Mariupol claimed the first civilian casualty since the ceasefire began. Local officials confirmed the death of a 33-year-old woman early on Sunday and said at least four other people had been wounded. 
 
 "They, terrorists, Russians, are trying to scare us. They have no respect for the ceasefire. They are lying all the time. They are people with no honor," said Slavik, a Ukrainian soldier armed with a machinegun. 
 
 A Reuters reporter at the scene, a few km (miles) from the center of the city of 500,000, saw fires raging just before midnight on Saturday as Ukrainian reinforcements raced east toward the demarcation line separating the two sides. 
 
 Poroshenko agreed to the ceasefire after Ukraine accused Russia of sending troops and arms onto its territory to bolster the separatists after they suffered heavy losses over the summer to a Ukrainian government offensive. 
 
 The peace roadmap agreed on Friday includes an exchange of prisoners of war and the establishment of a humanitarian corridor for refugees and aid. There was no sign of progress on either plan on Sunday. 
 
 (Additional reporting by Steve Scherer in Rome, Marcin Goclowski in Warsaw, Adrian Croft in Brussels, Arshad Mohammed in Washington, and Julien Ponthus in Paris; Writing by Gareth Jones; Editing by Mark Heinrich, Sonya Hepinstall, Hugh Lawson and Peter Cooney) ||||| Image copyright Reuters Image caption Fighting has been raging in the east between the Ukrainian military and pro-Russian rebels 
 
 Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has told President Vladimir Putin that reports of Russian tanks moving into Ukrainian territory are unacceptable. 
 
 Ukraine's interior minister said earlier that three tanks had entered rebel areas of the east, and fighting was under way. 
 
 Arsen Avakov said that the tanks entered Ukraine along with other armour through a border checkpoint controlled by rebels in the Luhansk region. 
 
 Russia denied the report. 
 
 The foreign ministry said it was "another fake piece of information". 
 
 Meanwhile, a vehicle belonging to a separatist leader was blown up in the eastern city of Donetsk late on Thursday. 
 
 The BBC's Steve Rosenberg says the van belonged to Denis Pushilin, the self-declared leader of the Donetsk People's Republic. 
 
 Mr Pushilin was not inside but pro-Russian separatists, who control the city, said four people were injured. 
 
 It is not clear what caused the explosion. 
 
 Image copyright AP Image caption A vehicle belonging to a separatist leader was destroyed in an explosion in Donetsk on Thursday 
 
 Image copyright AFP Image caption Denis Pushilin, the self-declared leader of the Donetsk People's Republic, was not in the vehicle at the time 
 
 Earlier, Moscow accused President Poroshenko of not delivering on his pledge to stop fighting in the east. It wants an investigation into allegations that Ukrainian forces used banned incendiary bombs against civilians. 
 
 "The lack of any progress whatsoever in efforts to stop the violence and halt military operations... is causing increasing concern," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. 
 
 He said that reports in the Russian media that incendiary bombs were being used was another "cause for special concern". 
 
 The bombs are designed to trigger major firestorms and were often used during the Vietnam War before they were banned by the United Nations. 
 
 Ukraine has denied using the weapons. It has accused Russia of allowing the rebels to deploy three Soviet-era T-72 tanks across the border into the east of the country. 
 
 Ukraine's presidency said in a statement that Mr Poroshenko, who was elected last month, had a "substantial" conversation by telephone with Mr Putin on Kiev's plan of bringing peace to the east. 
 
 'Destroyed' 
 
 Mr Avakov said the tanks had crossed the border from Russia along with armoured personnel carriers and artillery pieces in the Dyakove area of Luhansk region, before moving into the neighbouring Donetsk region. 
 
 Two headed towards the town of Horlivka and were attacked by government forces, he added. 
 
 Image copyright Reuters Image caption Rebel fighters could be seen in Snizhne on Thursday 
 
 Unverified video has been posted on YouTube of a battle tank rolling down a street said to be in Snizhne. The footage was shot from a flat overlooking the street. 
 
 A second clip, also said to have been recorded in Snizhne, shows a similar tank passing a roundabout. 
 
 There was no confirmation about the tanks from the insurgents. 
 
 Pro-Russian separatists in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions declared independence after holding referendums last month which were deemed illegal by the government in Kiev. 
 
 Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of supporting and arming the rebels - a claim denied by Moscow. 
 
 The rebellion began amid the turmoil which followed February's ousting of President Viktor Yanukovych, whose last-minute decision not to sign a landmark treaty with the European Union in November sparked mass street protests in Kiev. ||||| A pregnant journalist was recovering in hospital last night after a pro-Kremlin political leader in Russia told two male aides to ‘violently rape’ her. 
 
 Nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky launched his extraordinary tirade after reporter Stella Dubovitskaya asked him an innocuous question about sanctions against Ukraine. 
 
 The 67-year-old MP’s outburst came before a deadly gunfight at a Ukraine checkpoint controlled by pro-Russian separatists tore apart an Easter truce. 
 
 Scroll do wn for video 
 
 
 
 Vladimir Zhironovsky launched an extraordinary rant at journalist Stella Dubovitskaya (pictured right in a light-coloured shirt) at a press conference today - telling two male aides to 'violently' rape her 
 
 Zhirinovsky turns to shout at the journalist, who is six months pregnant, after she asks him about sanctions against Ukraine 
 
 The attack raised tensions and led separatists to call for Russian military intervention to protect civilians 
 
 Moscow and local militia claimed five people were killed in the firefight at around 1am yesterday near Slavyansk, blaming a far-right group for the attack. 
 
 ‘The Easter truce has been violated,’ the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement. 
 
 ‘This provocation…testifies to the lack of will on the part of the Kiev authorities to rein in and disarm extremists.’ 
 
 The politician approaches the female reporter - gesticulating at her wildly. He then told her: 'This is no place for you if you're pregnant' 
 
 But Ukraine has accused Moscow of a ‘cynical provocation’ staged by outside forces. 
 
 Yesterday Pope Francis prayed in his Easter message that God would ‘enlighten and inspire the initiatives that promote peace in Ukraine, so that all those involved…will make every effort to prevent violence’. 
 
 The fatal assault was the first serious violence since last week’s signing of a proposed peace plan between Russia, Ukraine, the US and the European Union. 
 
 The deal requires illegal military groups to disband and for gangs to leave seized buildings. 
 
 Two of Zhirinovsky's aides then approach the woman, following his commands. One grabs the pregnant reporter while others jump to her defence 
 
 It was rejected by separatist leaders, who still occupy police stations and government offices in at least ten cities. Ukraine’s interim prime minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk has accused Russian president Vladimir Putin of trying to ‘restore the Soviet Union.’ 
 
 
 
 He said that if Putin succeeded it would be ‘the biggest disaster of this century’. 
 
 In Moscow, Zhirinovsky’s conduct towards the pregnant reporter has been referred to the Russian parliament’s ethics commission and he faces legal action from Miss Dubovitskaya’s employer, news agency Russia Today. 
 
 One of the man's aides turns to look at Zhirinovsky - who then calls one of the reporter's defenders an 'interfering lesbian.' Stella Dubovitskaya is now in hospital following her ordeal 
 
 ‘Due to the disgusting incident in the state duma, after which our correspondent was hospitalised because of Vladimir Zhirinovsky’s discourtesy, we have decided to use all legal options to punish Mr Zhirinovsky as severely as possible under the law, including by suing him,’ said general director Margareta Simonyan. 
 
 After Miss Dubovitskaya’s question, the founder of the far right Liberal Democratic Party began shouting before manhandling two young male aides towards the pregnant mother-of-one. 
 
 He then shouted to them: ‘When I say, you run to her and violently rape her.’ 
 
 Zhirinovsky apologised for his actions during a live interview on Russian television this evening 
 
 The man said: 'When talking to the press in the Duma on Friday, answering questions at the end, I spoke a bit rudely when I replied to a young woman. I offer my apologies to her and to everyone, if I happened to offend someone' 
 
 A male journalist told Zhirinovsky: ‘She is pregnant, why are you attacking her?’ 
 
 
 
 Zhirinovsky then pushed two aides towards the journalist, who is six months pregnant, shouting: ‘Go and kiss her. Grab her.’ 
 
 One physically touched Miss Dubovitskaya, to the shock of the watching press, with several female reporters recoiling. 
 
 The gun battle was evidence that Ukraine is not reining in gun-wielding far right extremists, Russia claimed 
 
 The attack shows that the Ukrainian authorities are failing to rein in armed extremists, Russia's foreign ministry said today 
 
 At this point, another female reporter, Yulia Chuchalova from news agency Interfax, told Zhirinovsky: ‘This is derogatory, humiliating – what are you doing here?’ 
 
 
 
 Zhirinovsky hit back: ‘What are you doing intervening here, you lesbian? Get out of here.’ 
 
 He shouted: ‘This is no place for you if you’re pregnant. We need healthy people. Pregnant women should not show up at work. Sit at home and look after your child, got that?’ 
 
 He then shouted ‘get out of here, you damned lesbians’. 
 
 Armed men, wearing black and orange ribbons of St. George - a symbol widely associated with pro-Russian protests in Ukraine, drive an armoured personnel carrier in Slaviansk 
 
 An armed pro-Russian militant stands guard at a check-point outside Slaviansk today. A photographer at the scene said there were two burned out jeeps at the barricaded makeshift checkpoint 
 
 An armed pro-Russian militant looks for ammunition casings from the gun battle 
 
 Pro-Russian gunmen at the check point which is under the control of pro-Russian activists in the village of Bulbasika near Slaviansk
– Separatists in Eastern Ukraine are starting to complain that Moscow has sold them out, as they prepare for what the New York Times is declaring their "last stand." As they retreated toward Donetsk yesterday, insurgents blew up two road bridges and a railroad bridge behind them. An emboldened Ukraine today said that it would not reopen ceasefire negotiations until the rebels had laid down their weapons entirely, the AP reports. The once undermanned and outgunned Ukrainian force is now noticeably better armed, using buses and pickup trucks alongside its armored vehicles to transport what the Telegraph describes as a "motley mix" of police, special forces, and militiamen. Ukraine says it has succeeded in sealing the Russian border, preventing troops and weapons from flowing to the rebels. But Vladimir Putin has been suspiciously silent, ignoring the separatists' increasingly urgent pleas for help, and many are speculating that he aims to cut his losses, having already taken the real prize of Crimea, the Wall Street Journal reports. Observers believe Moscow has ruled out any military intervention, and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov struck a decidedly peaceful tone at a news conference, saying, "A quick end to the bloodshed is in our common interest." But one US official cautioned against declaring victory. "There is only one person who knows what Putin is planning," he said, "and that is Putin."