Pokrovsk: Ukraine's vital eastern town in Russian sights

Pokrovsk is a major logistics hub with a railway station and lies at the intersection of important roads.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatchHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS ElectionUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessWomen at the HelmFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersPokrovsk: Ukraine's vital eastern town in Russian sightsREUTERS/Thomas PeterFamilies with children have been ordered to leave Pokrovsk as the Russians advanceThe town of Pokrovsk plays a crucial role as a logistics hub used by Ukrainian forces in the eastern region of Donbas. It is home to a key railway station, and it is located at the intersection of several important roads.

Russian forces have for months sought to capture the town, but their advance has quickened this month and they are now thought to be less than 10km (6 miles) away.

Before the war, Pokrovrsk was home to some 69,000 residents, with many of them employed in coal mining, metallurgy and machine-building.

Thousands left in recent months as the Russians advanced, but now families with children have been ordered to evacuate too. Civilians had only a week or two to get out, Serhiy Dobriak warned last Monday.

Ukraine had hoped that by seizing territory in Russia's Kursk region it would be able to divert Russian troops away from their eastern advance, but that has not happened. If anything the Russian offensive on Pokrovsk, and Toretsk further to the north east, has intensified.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c785z8917leo

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