Evacuation Urged as Russian Forces Close In on Pokrovsk

Military authorities in Pokrovsk, Ukraine, urge civilians to evacuate swiftly as Russian forces rapidly advance. Ukrainian troops attempt a bold incursion into Russia's Kursk region, but face intense Russian assaults on Pokrovsk and nearby towns. The conflict poses high stakes for both sides in the ongoing war.

Military authorities in the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk on Friday urged civilians to speed up their evacuation because the Russian army is quickly closing in on what has for months been one of Moscow's key targets in the war.

Pokrovsk officials said in a Telegram post Friday that Russian troops are “advancing at a fast pace. With every passing day there is less and less time to collect personal belongings and leave for safer regions”.

Ukrainian troops have been trying to divert the Kremlin's military effort from the front line in Ukraine to Russian soil by launching a bold incursion across the border into Russia's Kursk region. But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had warned on Thursday that Pokrovsk and other nearby towns in the Donetsk region were “facing the most intense Russian assaults”.