INTENSIFIED fighting in eastern Ukraine may lead to a “senseless repeat” of the suffering and bloodshed that engulfed the port city of Mariupol, an international refugee charity warned today.

Several areas of the region are already in ruins, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) said in a statement, following a five-day visit to the country by general secretary Jan Egeland.

“The escalation of war in east Ukraine will result in horrific bloodshed and mass displacement from the eastern regions, including Luhansk and Donetsk, retraumatising communities who have already suffered eight years of hostilities,” Mr Egeland said.