Temporary truce in Donetsk, Ukraine

DONETSK, Ukraine, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- A temporary truce was declared Tuesday in fighting at the Donetsk, Ukraine, airport between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian separatists.

International observers said the truce will begin Friday and only affects the area near the airport, the scene of heavy fighting that resumed over the weekend. In the past 24 hours, three Ukrainian soldiers were killed and many more injured.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, which has been monitoring events in eastern Ukraine, arranged the talks between the two sides. A Russian general attended the talks, the British Broadcasting Corp. reported. The deal includes a withdrawal, by both sides, of heavy weapons from the area of confrontation, but how wide the demilitarized zone will be has not yet been determined.

Ukrainian military spokesman Olexiy Dmitrashovsky offered no details on the truce Tuesday but acknowledged "a ceasefire agreement has been reached."

A separate ceasefire agreement is under negotiation in neighboring Luhansk.

Fighting has continued despite a Sept. 5 peace treaty signed in Minsk, Belarus. Each side has accused the other of violating the agreement.