Death toll in Ukraine fighting hits 2,593 - U.N. human rights official

KIEV (Reuters) - A total of 2,593 people have died in fighting in eastern Ukraine since mid-April, a senior U.N. human rights official said on Friday. "The trend is clear and alarming. There is a significant increase in the death toll in the east," Ivan Simonovic, U.N. Assistant Secretary General for Human Rights, told journalists. "The current number of killed is 2,593 - close to 3,000 if we include the 298 victims of the MH17 (Malaysian airliner) plane crash," he said. (Reporting by Alessandra Prentice; Writing By Richard Balmforth)