2 civilians killed in surge of shelling in east Ukraine as latest peace talks founder

People observe damage in their flat after shelling between Russia-backed separatists and Ukrainian government troops in Donetsk, Eastern Ukraine Monday, June 1, 2015. In a new report released Monday, the U.N. human rights office said that the number of people killed in more than a year of fighting in the east has risen to more than 6,400 people. (AP Photo/Mstyslav Chernov) (The Associated Press)

A firefighter works to extinguish the fire at a market destroyed after shelling in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, June 3, 2015, during battles on Wednesday in eastern Ukraine Territories. Intensified battles around the rebel stronghold of Donetsk on Wednesday left more than a dozen people dead and threatens to tip the country back into full-blown war, according to Ukraine’s General Staff.(AP Photo/Alexander Ermochenko) (The Associated Press)

A firefighter extinguishes the fire at a market destroyed after shelling in Donetsk, Ukraine, Wednesday, June 3, 2015, during battles on Wednesday in eastern Ukraine Territories. Intensified battles around the rebel stronghold of Donetsk on Wednesday left more than a dozen people dead and threatens to tip the country back into full-blown war, according to Ukraine’s General Staff. (AP Photo/Alexander Ermochenko) (The Associated Press)

Authorities in east Ukraine say two civilians in a government-controlled area have been killed amid a surge of shelling as combat flares between the armed forces and separatist rebels.

Luhansk region governor Hennadiy Moskal said in a statement on his official website that an elderly couple died when their car was struck by mortar fire Wednesday morning. The statement said the strike occurred 20 kilometers (12 miles) into government-held territory.

Military spokesmen daily report fighting along several points of the entire 450-kilometer front line.

As Ukraine's conflict shows little sign of abating, talks on implementing a shaky February cease-fire agreement have foundered. Negotiators from the warring sides met in Belarus on Tuesday, but the session concluded without obvious progress.

The war has killed more than 6,400 people since April 2014.