International security and aid organizations appealed to Ukraine and Russian-backed separatists on Feb. 3 to withdraw from front lines where fighting has dramatically escalated or risk a humanitarian disaster.
Since Jan. 29, shelling on both sides of the front line near the government-held city of Avdiyivka has been heavier than at any time since last summer. That has refocused global attention on a simmering conflict that strained relations between Russia and the West to the worst degree since the Cold War era.
