The Russian army is strengthening its positions in villages around the key eastern Ukrainian town of Pokrovsk in an attempt to encircle it and lay siege to a vital transport hub linking embattled Donbas with the rest of Ukraine.

Russian troops conducted active offensive operations near Yelyzavetivka, Promin, Petropavlivka, Zelene, Zvirove, Kotlyne, Novooleksandrivka, Uspenivka, Nadiyivka, Kurakhove, Dachne, and Yasenove. Additionally,

MOSCOW/KYIV (Reuters) -Russian forces are closing in on the strategically important eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk after capturing a string of villages to its south, and Ukraine has halted production at its only coking coal mine nearby due to the advance.