Ukrainian forces intensified their attacks on pro-Russian rebels in the east of the country on Wednesday and hit a section of Donetsk, the capital of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, that had previously been considered safe.

The Associated Press reported rocket salvoes killed five people and damaged a hospital, six schools and five child-care facilities in the city of 950,000, separatists said. The hospital, located in the city's western Tekstilshchik district, was damaged by shrapnel, and its windows were shattered. An AP reporter at the scene found one body covered by a sheet on the ground near a crater from a projectile.

"There were six or seven explosions," said Vladimir Oryol, an eyewitness. "We fell on the ground, people were screaming. In fact, it was very scary and horrible."

In the past three weeks alone, more than 220 civilians have fallen victim to the fighting that ensued after the end of a fragile ceasefire, according to the United Nations.

Eduard Basurin, a spokesman for the separatist militants, said that four civilians had already been killed before Wednesday's shelling.

Speaking on behalf of the Ukrainian military, meanwhile, Vladislav Seleznev said that Kiev had lost two troops in the past 24 hours and that 18 more had been injured.

The separatists seem to have been able to defend one of the towns that has been a principal target of the Ukrainian forces' advance, Reuters noted. The apparent fall of Vuhlehirsk would reportedly be a setback for Kiev, as militants are trying to surround a nearby garrison of Ukrainian troops.

Facing an increasingly complex picture in Ukraine's east, the government in Kiev is asking the international community to provide more military and financial support, The Guardian said. It was appealing to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who is set to visit the capital on Thursday.

Kerry is seen as one of the supporters of providing Kiev with military -- and not just logistical support. The proposal, also backed by Gen. Philip Breedlove, NATO's military commander, is under consideration by the Obama administration, The New York Times reported earlier this week.

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