By Canadian Press

Ukrainian officials urge civilians to evacuate eastern town of Pokrovsk as Russian troops close in

Aug 16, 2024 | 5:23 AM

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Military authorities in the eastern Ukrainian town 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.

The call for people to get out as soon as possible came as Kyiv’s forces are trying to divert the Kremlin’s military focus to Russian soil by launching a bold incursion across the border into the Kursk region.

The urgency also underscored the high-stakes gamble Ukraine is making by taking the war into Russia with its ongoing assault that started Aug. 6. The attack was a daring attempt to change the dynamics of the 2 1/2-year conflict, but it could leave Ukraine’s shorthanded defense at the mercy of Russia’s push. The Kremlin’s forces have had battlefield momentum and superior forces in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region since the spring.

Evacuations in the Donetsk region around Pokrovsk have become increasingly urgent in recent weeks.

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.”

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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.”

“Priority supplies — everything that is needed — are being sent there,” Zelenskyy said on X.

That same day, authorities told people to start evacuating the town.

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Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

The Associated Press