Heavy fighting in Pokrovsk, Russians advance

Fighting continues in the eastern Ukrainian town of Pokrovsk, where Russian troops have advanced into parts of the city after months of attacks, Ukrainian officials quoted by DPA and BTA said.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian forces had concentrated a large number of troops near Pokrovsk and the neighboring town of Mirnograd, leading to what he described as one of the most difficult battles being fought on the long front in eastern Ukraine.

"It is there, against Pokrovsk, that the Russians have concentrated their main forces for the attack – and this is a significant number of occupation troops," Zelensky said in his nightly address.

"Of course, this creates a difficult situation in Pokrovsk and the surrounding areas," he added. "Heavy fighting is taking place in the city and on the roads to it."

The supply situation is uncertain. "We must continue to inflict as many losses as possible on the Russians," Zelensky stressed, however.

Ukraine's General Staff reported that several small Russian infantry groups had penetrated Pokrovsk, bypassing the defense lines and establishing positions in the city.

About 200 Russian soldiers were involved in the fighting, which was "very dynamic and intense." Both Russian and Ukrainian forces are using combat drones, and Russian troops are trying to break through with tanks and armored vehicles, the General Staff said.

Kiev has denied Russian claims that its troops in Pokrovsk are completely surrounded, saying Ukrainian forces have retaken some areas around the town and stabilized the situation on nearby roads.

Pokrovsk and Mirnograd, both in Donetsk region, have been under heavy attack for months and remain at risk of encirclement.

At least three people were killed and 29 were wounded in a Russian drone attack over Kiev overnight, Ukraine's civil defense service said on Sunday. Seven children were among the wounded. Kiev's military administration said air defenses had been activated but not all approaching drones had been stopped. Falling debris damaged residential buildings in several districts of the capital, said Mayor Vitali Klitschko.

Russian authorities said 16 people had been injured in Ukrainian drone strikes in the western Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine.

Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said 10 civilians, including two minors, were injured in the village of Maslova Pristan, where two houses were seriously damaged. He later reported six more injured in other parts of the region, including the city of Belgorod and the village of Dorogosht.

Residents of Russia's border regions are increasingly feeling the effects of the war through Ukrainian counterattacks, DPA noted. The scale of the casualties and destruction in Russia, however, remains far smaller than that caused by Moscow's campaign in Ukraine.