Fighting continues ahead of Ukraine ceasefire

The peace plan hammered out Thursday during marathon four-way talks in Minsk, Belarus, raised hopes of an end to a bitter 10-month-long conflict that has killed more than 5,000 people and strained East-West relations.

But many questions over how it will be implemented and whether it will stick remain unanswered.

The first test will be whether the guns fall silent when the ceasefire comes into force at midnight local time Saturday to Sunday.

Both sides are expected to start pulling back their heavy weapons from the front lines as of Monday, creating a buffer zone at least 50 kilometers (31 miles) wide.

The package of measures is the outcome of 16 hours of overnight talks among the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France in Minsk.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which already has a monitoring mission in Ukraine, has been given the challenging task of overseeing the process.

• This process should begin no later than the next day after the ceasefire and should be over within 14 days.

• A dialogue on new local elections and the special status of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions will begin the day after the withdrawal.

• A law will be created to give amnesty to people involved in events in Luhansk and Donetsk.

• Both sides must ensure the release and exchange of all hostages and illegally held prisoners by no later than the fifth day after the withdrawal.

• Withdrawal of all foreign troops and military equipment from Ukraine, including mercenaries, and the disarmament of militia groups.

CNN’s Nic Robertson, Alla Eshchenko, Pierre Meilhan and journalist Victoria Butenko in Kiev contributed to this report.

CNN