Ukraine orders urgent evacuation of families in eastern city of Pokrovsk

Mum and son sitting in a evacuation train in Pokrovsk, Donetsk region on Monday. Credit: AP

Ukrainian authorities have urgently ordered families with children to evacuate the eastern city of Pokrovsk as Russian forces advance.

Officials have said about 53,000 people still live Pokrovsk while some have already fled their homes.

Ukraine soldiers repair tracks of a military vehicle in Donetsk region. Credit: AP

Pokrovsk is one of Ukraine’s main defensive strongholds and a key logistics hub in the Donetsk region. Its capture is said to compromise the country's defensive abilities, supply routes, and push Russia closer to its aim of capturing the entire region.

Russia aims to control all parts of Donetsk and the neighbouring Luhansk, which together make up the Donbas industrial region.

Ukraine attempted to ease pressure on the eastern front with an unexpected incursion into Russia's Kursk region on August 6.

Ukrainian vehicle fires towards Russian positions near Chasiv Yar town, in Donetsk region. Credit: AP

On Sunday, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the incursion aimed to create a buffer zone to prevent further cross-border attacks by Moscow, particularly with long-range artillery, missiles, and glide bombs. The operation continued on Monday under tight secrecy.

Russia's attacks across Ukraine’s Donetsk region followed the capture of Avdiivka have cost it heavily in troops and armour.

Pokrovsk's residents have just two weeks to leave the city safely, as Russian forces were just six miles from the city's outskirts, officials have said.

The Institute for the Study of War reported that Russian forces have been advancing by about two square kilometres (0.8 square miles) a day in the region over the past six months.

Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief, said on Monday that “heavy battles” were taking place in the Pokrovsk area.

He also said that the nearby town of Toretsk is under heavy pressure. If captured, it would allow Russian forces to advance on the key stronghold of Chasiv Yar from the south.

Pokrovsk officials met residents to provide them with logistical details on the evacuation. People were offered shelter in western Ukraine, where they will be hosted in prepared dormitories and separate houses.

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