Kiev , Ukraine ( CNN ) Pro-Russian rebels in Donetsk have withdrawn all heavy weapons from the front lines in accordance with a recent peace deal , the rebel group Donetsk People 's Republic said Saturday . On the other side , the Kiev-backed Donetsk regional authority said Ukrainian forces also withdrew all heavy weapons from the front lines in Donetsk , but added that in a 24-hour period from Friday to Saturday pro-Russian militants carried out 46 attacks , all of which were repelled , according to Col. Valentin Fedichev . A shaky ceasefire has been in place in Donetsk and the neighboring Luhansk region , the center of a months-long conflict between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian government forces . The estimated number of people killed in eastern Ukraine since April 2014 now exceeds 6,000 `` in spite of successive ceasefires , '' the United Nations Human Rights Office said earlier this week . The escalation in fighting in recent weeks , particularly near the Donetsk airport and in the Debaltseve area , resulted in hundreds of deaths , both civilian and military , according to the United Nations report . The report paints a picture of `` merciless devastation of civilian lives and infrastructure , '' said U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein . He called for all sides to adhere to the peace deal , reached last month in Minsk , Belarus , which calls for a ceasefire in many of the conflict 's hotspots . Victoria Butenko contributed from Kiev . CNN 's Michael Martinez wrote from Los Angeles .
The withdrawal comes after last month 's peace deal . A shaky ceasefire has been in place in Belarus and neighboring Luhansk .