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ByBalintSzlanko and Peter Leonard The Associated Press DONETSK, UKRAINE Gov- ernment troops and Rus- sian-backed separatists largely suspended hostili- ties in east Ukraine on Tues- day, raising hopes of a last- ing peaceful settlement in a conflict that has raged for seven months and claimed thousands of lives. The lull in fighting fol- lowed a proposal by Ukrai- nian President Petro Poro- shenko to hold a "day of si- lence" as a bid to revive a largely ignored cease-fire deal reached in September. The war has left more than 4,300 people dead, displaced hundreds of thou- sands and exhausted a na- tion struggling to stave off economic collapse. As Ukraine enters its long winter, when tempera- tures can drop below freez- ing for days if not weeks on end, combat fatigue is showing on both sides. Separatist rebel leaders have supported the truce, which appeared to be hold- ing around the main rebel- held cities of Donetsk and Luhansk. Despite a noticeable de- crease in the level of shell- ing, the military press office said Tuesday evening said there had been 13 attacks on army positions and residen- tial areas in government- controlled settlements. "Ukrainian troops, be- having with honor and re- straint, didn't open fire in return," according to a statement. Earlier, a military spokes- man said attacks had been mounted in areas around Debaltseve, a town 70 kilo- meters (45 miles) east of Do- netsk that has been the scene of some of the heaviest shell- ing as separatists attempt to squeeze out government forces ensconced there. Rebel authorities said they recorded no rocket at- tacks by government troops, but that they were engaged with small arms fire. Viktor Muzhenko, chief of Ukraine's General Staff, said the truce that began Tuesday was open-ended and that no end date had been set. Mil- itary authorities have indi- cated that the cessation of hostilities is being seen as a confidence-building exercise and that heavy weaponry could be pulled back from the front if fighting stop for several days. Intense shelling contin- ued right up until the eve of the cutoff period for hos- tilities, killing four people and wounding 10 others. Local authorities said 20 residential buildings were damaged in rebel-con- trolled Donetsk. At one shattered house in Donetsk, the mother and daughter of a man killed in the shelling were still reel- ing from the events of the previous day. "He was 47 years old. He was so hard working, such a good father, a good husband and good son," said Anna Frolova, the man's mother. "How are they going to live without him? What are they going to do now?" Poroshenko's office ear- lier this week announced new peace talks involving Russia and the Organiza- tion for Security and Co- operation in Europe to be held Tuesday in the Belaru- sian capital, Minsk. Vasiliy Vovk, head of the Ukrainian security services' investigative department, said Monday night that the talks had been pushed back to Friday. Ukrainian military offi- cials said Tuesday evening, however, that they were un- certain when negotiations would take place. Russian Foreign Minis- ter Sergey Lavrov struck a conciliatory note earlier in the day, suggesting that Moscow could support the return of separatist areas into Ukraine's fold. Lavrov told state news agency RIA- Novosti that rebels were ready "to restore a com- mon economic, humani- tarian and political space" with Ukraine. CONFLICT Ukraineforces,rebelslargelysuspendfighting BALINTSZLANKO—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS A man walks past a mortar impact site Tuesday in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine. MATT DUNHAM — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Joint-Nobel Peace prize winners Malala Yousafzai, le , and Kailash Satyarthi attend a press conference Tuesday in Oslo, Norway. By Danica Kirka The Associated Press OSLO, NORWAY Malala Yousafszai wasn't alone when she was shot by the Taliban for having the te- merity to demand an edu- cation. Two other girls were also attacked that day in Paki- stan and Malala hasn't for- gotten them. She brought her friends with her to Oslo, Norway, so they can share her joy as she receives the Nobel Peace Prize. Shazia Ramazan, 16, and Kainat Riaz, 17, hugged their friend and posed for pictures with her Tuesday before telling reporters that all three are bound to- gether in what they called "Mission Malala" — join- ing with people around the world to make sure that young girls get a chance to study. "When you are educated, you are able to do every- thing," Riaz said. "If you are not educated, you can't do anything." Girl power was hard won for these two. Both suffered severe wounds in the Oct. 8, 2012 Taliban attack. Ma- lala was airlifted to a Brit- ish hospital, but Ramazan and Riaz stayed behind. Police escorted them to school. But they were deter- mined to go — and it made them appreciate it all the more. The girls are now study- ing in Wales within the cas- tle-like walls of UWC Atlan- tic College. Both want to be doctors. "The Malala mission is our mission. She's my friend," Riaz said. "And she inspired us. Inshallah, we will always support her." Their affection is clear. When the girls hug, they are just so happy. And in that way that teenag- ers are happy, they are also 1,000 percent certain that they have everything to live for. They are proud Malala raised her voice, even if it caused them pain. They want their country to share, to bask in the spotlight and to fight for learning. Friends shot with Malala share joy NOBEL PRIZE By Sylvie Corbet and Lori Hinnant The Associated Press PARIS A Frenchman held for more than three years by al-Qaida's North African branch was freed Tuesday, days after two of the men implicated in his abduction were reportedly released from a prison in Mali. Negotiations among the governments of Niger, Mali and France led to freedom for Serge Lazarevic, 51, who was described by the French president as in "rel- atively good health" despite his long captivity. Tuesday's release, greeted with joy among many in France, stands in contrast to the attempted rescue in Yemen last week- end that ended in the deaths of two hostages — an American and South Af- rican — held by al-Qaida. Lazarevic was now en route to Niamey, the capital of Niger, French President Francois Hollande said as he thanked Niger's presi- dent for helping to free the Frenchman. "We no longer have any hostages in any country of the world and we should not have any," Hollande added. Hollande's government insists it pays no ransoms and does not exchange prisoners, although in Sep- tember he acknowledged for the first time that "other countries have done so to help us." President Barack Obama last month ordered a review of the U.S. response to cit- izens being taken hostage abroad after the deaths of several Americans held by Islamic extremists. But the Obama administration said the review will not include changing the policy against ransoms. "You have a choice be- tween the policy of Mr. Obama, which appears to be not to negotiate and to see hostages killed, and a position of negotiat- ing without admitting it," Alain Marsaud, a conserva- tive French lawmaker, told the BFM television net- work. "It's true that we ne- gotiate, we pay, and we try to get results .... There isn't a single Frenchman who believes Mr. Lazarevic was freed because Mr. Hollande has nice eyes." Another Frenchman kid- napped in Mali in Novem- ber 2011 along with Laza- revic, Philippe Verdon, was found dead in July 2013. A security official in Mali, who spoke on condi- tion of anonymity because he feared for his safety, said Lazarevic's release came after negotiations to free two al-Qaida fighters ar- rested in his abduction. The two al-Qaida detain- ees were transferred to me- diators in Niger on Satur- day and turned over to al- Qaida, the Malian official said. It was not clear if they remained in Niger. A French official who spoke on condition of an- onymity because the issue is sensitive said Lazarevic was freed Tuesday but de- clined to give any details on the release of the al-Qa- ida prisoners beyond say- ing the negotiations over Lazarevic's release were led by Mali and Niger. Lazarevic and Verdon were kidnapped from their hotel in Hombori in north- eastern Mali while doing a feasibility study for a fu- ture cement factory, their families have said. Specu- lation is widespread, how- ever, that there were other reasons for their presence in Mali, a long-time desert hideout for al-Qaida and other extremists in Afri- ca's Sahel region. Hostage-taking is a lu- crative business in Mali and other Sahel countries. American officials have qui- etly accused France and other European countries of paying ransoms for their kidnapped citizens. Al-Qa- ida in the Islamic Maghreb took numerous Western hostages until France in- tervened in Mali in January 2013 to rout out extremists. Hollande on Tuesday urged French citizens and companies to take contin- ued precautions against kidnappings. Pierre Martinet, a former official with France's DGSE spy service, said French citi- zens will continue to be tar- geted by extremist kidnap- pers "because they know it's among the governments that directly negotiate for their liberation." 'RELATIVELY GOOD HEALTH' Frenchman held 3 years by al-Qaida freed C & C PROPERTIES An Independently owned and operated Member of Coldwell Banker Residential Affiliates. 741 Main Street, Suite #2 Red Bluff, CA 96080 1-800-287-2187 (530) 527-2187 FOR24/7PROPERTYINFOCALL1-888-902-7253 TEHAMA COUNTY REAL ESTATE TEAM • OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK www.redbluffcoldwellbanker.com See All Tehama County Listings at OurknowledgeableandprofessionalstaffofRealtors are here to assist you with all your Real Estate needs. *18Monthsto3YearsforShortSales/4–7YearsforForeclosures. If you were involved in a Foreclosure or Short Sale between 2007 – 2012, YOU MAY QUALIFY FOR HOME OWNERSHIP AGAIN. Depending upon the time frame* you may be eligible to purchase a home. 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(530) 527-2151 N EWS D AILY RED BLUFF TEHAMA COUNTY T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U N TY S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Gayla Eckels: geckels@redbluffdailynews.com WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2014 REDBLUFFDAILYNEWS.COM | NEWS | 5 B