KIEV claimed today that its troops had made a significant push into rebel-held territory, taking control of a large part of the separatist stronghold of Lugansk and nearly encircling Donetsk.

The claims follow days of street battles and weeks of shelling that has killed separatists and civilians indiscriminately.

The civilian death toll is mounting rapidly from sustained artillery strikes and rebel-held cities are slipping into a humanitarian disaster.

At least 52 deaths were reported on Wednesday, along with 64 wounded.

And that total was in the absence of reports from Lugansk, meaning the actual toll could be even higher.

Several Donetsk neighbourhoods have been hit with sustained artillery fire and fighting on the city’s outskirts has become more intense.

Mortars struck Chelyuskintsev Street in the north of the city, shattering the windows of several blocks of flats.

The attack left a huge hole in the first floor of one of the buildings.

Around Donetsk, 43 locals were killed and 42 wounded in less than two days, including in two deadly artillery barrages on Donetsk city.

In addition, nine troops died and 22 were wounded in fighting in a town outside Donetsk.

Lugansk city authorities, meanwhile, spoke of running battles between the two sides.

By early evening, government forces had taken control of “significant parts” of Lugansk, claimed National Security Council spokesman Andriy Lysenko.

The city has been under siege for 19 days, with water and electricity cut off.

Residents there are struggling to survive, the International Committee of the Red Cross said.

“People hardly leave their homes for fear of being caught in the middle of ongoing fighting, with intermittent shelling of residential areas placing civilians at risk,” it said.

The agency said it had taken all necessary preparatory steps for the passage of the Russian aid convoy.

It said it was ready to deliver aid to Lugansk if Ukraine accepted the strictly humanitarian nature of the convoy and all parties in the fighting gave assurances of safe passage.

Meanwhile, the first few lorries in the huge convoy were passing through Ukrainian customs inspection to await clearance from Kiev to proceed.