On Heels of Cease-Fire, Sustained Explosions Reportedly Heard Outside Ukrainian Port City

KIEV, Ukraine (TheBlaze/AP) — Sustained explosions outside the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol have been heard, witnesses reported, and a volunteer battalion of Ukrainian fighters said Grad rockets were being fired at its positions.

The reports Saturday night came little more than a day after Ukraine and Russian-backed separatist rebels signed a cease-fire after more than four months of fighting in the country's east.

The cease-fire largely had appeared to be holding during much of the day, but late Saturday witnesses in Mariupol told The Associated Press by telephone that heavy explosions were coming from the city's eastern outskirts, where Ukrainian troops retain defensive lines against the rebels.

The volunteer Azov Battalion posted on Facebook that their positions were hit by Grad rockets but did not give details.

People in Mariupol reacted to the cease-fire announcement with some hope but mostly doubt in this news clip: