Ukraine accuses Russia of sending in tanks, escalating crisis

Ukraine says hundreds of rebels killed as truce crumbles

KYIV � Ukraine's military said its forces killed as many as 200 rebels in fighting in Donetsk as dozens of tanks and other military vehicles crossed the border into Ukraine from Russia.

�Insurgents who were shelling Ukrainian troop positions at Donetsk Airport Thursday were killed by government troop artillery strikes,� Ukraine's Defence Ministry said on Facebook. �Four separatist tanks, two armoured personnel carriers, two howitzers, and an infantry combat vehicle were destroyed, and up to 200 insurgents were killed.�

The death toll, which couldn't be independently confirmed, is the biggest reported number of troops or fighters killed during repeated breaches of a Sept. 5 truce. Earlier, the Ukrainian government said it had suffered more than 100 killed and about 600 wounded since the ceasefire came into force.