MOSCOW, Dhu-AlQa'dah 29, 1437, Sep 1, 2016, SPA -- A new cease-fire in eastern Ukraine is holding, after months of fighting, AP cited Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko as reporting. Poroshenko said in a statement released at noon local time on Thursday that his forces have not seen any fighting in the past 12 hours. The parties in the conflict, which has claimed more than 9,500 lives, earlier agreed to stop fighting by Sept. 1, which is the first day of school in Ukraine. Government forces and Russia-backed rebels agreed back in 2015 to stop fighting and pull back heavy weaponry. --SPA 16:00 LOCAL TIME 13:00 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w