Three Ukrainian soldiers were killed and 14 others wounded in the past 24 hours as fighting between government forces and pro-independence rebels in eastern regions has intensified, said the authorities on Thursday.Government military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said that despite the current cease-fire, sporadic provocations persist along the entire front line, while at the key flashpoints of the defense line, clashes have turned into the full-scale hostilities.

The situation is particularly tense in Shyrokyne village, close to the government-controlled key port city of Mariupol and near the rebel stronghold of Donetsk, he told a media briefing.

On the civilian side, two people were wounded by shrapnel during shelling in Mariynka town, 30 km west of Donetsk, according to a regional interior department.

Violence in eastern Ukraine has been raging since April 2014, claiming more than 6,400 lives so far.