MOSCOW: Russia claimed on Monday that its forces have captured the town of Artemovo in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, a significant development amid the ongoing conflict in the area. The town, also known as Zalizne in Ukrainian, was described by Moscow as a “major population centre” in the region, which has seen intense combat throughout the nearly two-and-a-half-year conflict.
According to Russia’s defence ministry, the capture of Artemovo represents a notable advance for Russian troops, who are also targeting nearby towns such as New York and Toretsk. The settlement of Zalizne had a pre-war population of approximately 5,000, making it one of the largest locations to fall under Russian control in recent weeks.
The Donetsk region, which Russia claimed to have annexed in 2022, has been the site of some of the most fierce fighting in the ongoing conflict. Despite Moscow’s assertions of annexation, it has not achieved full control over any of the four Ukrainian regions it claimed to annex last year.
Russia’s recent gains come amid a challenging situation for Ukrainian forces, who are grappling with shortages of manpower and ammunition as they attempt to hold the front lines against the advancing Russian troops.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities have ordered a mandatory evacuation of families with children from Pokrovsk, a key city in the Donetsk region. Vadym Filashkin, the governor of Donetsk, announced the decision to evacuate families and children from Pokrovsk and surrounding villages, citing the proximity of Russian forces as a critical factor in the decision. More than 53,000 people, including nearly 4,000 children, live in the affected area.
Filashkin described the evacuation as “necessary and inevitable,” emphasizing the need to protect civilians as Russian forces continued to inch closer to the city. Pokrovsk is strategically located at a key road junction that supplies Ukrainian troops and towns across the eastern front.
Russia’s defence ministry reported on Sunday that its forces had also taken control of Svyrydonivka, another frontline settlement approximately 15 kilometers (about nine miles) from Pokrovsk.
Sergiy Dobryak, head of Pokrovsk’s military administration, had previously warned that Russian forces were less than 10 kilometers from the city’s outskirts, urging remaining residents to evacuate as a precaution.
