Russia has deployed 170,000 troops to Donetsk to bolster resources in the battle for Pokrovsk, Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday.

Oleksandr Syrskyi says special forces have been deployed but denies Russian reports Ukrainian troops are surrounded in Pokrovsk.

In May 2024, deep in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region, Russia’s proud T-90 main battle tank—hailed by President Vladimir Putin as “the best tank in the world”—met an unexpected fate when a Ukrainian drone strike hit it front-on and then struck again from above.

Russia mounted its second most-intense aerial assault overnight into Thursday, October 30, launching a salvo of 653 drones, decoys and missiles. Ukraine’s Air Force intercepted 592 drones and 31 missiles;

In previous sieges during the almost four years since Russia launched its all-out invasion of its neighbor, Ukraine has pulled out of some places to avoid losing troops. Ukrainian forces are desperately short-handed against Russia’s bigger army.

Russian troops are making a concerted push in eastern Ukraine and have gained a foothold in the strategic hub of Pokrovsk, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says. Moscow's soldiers outnumber Kyiv's 8-1 in the area and Ukraine cannot match that, Zelensky added while insisting Russia had not yet "achieved the planned result".

German newspaper Die Welt's chief reporter Ibrahim Naber and his team came under a Russian Lancet drone attack while working in eastern Ukraine on Oct. 13, injuring him and two other crew members.

Defense Ministry says forces captured Pryvillia, Pishchane, and Tykhe villages in different regions - Anadolu Ajansı

Ukrainian soldiers told Business Insider the tactic is becoming increasingly frequent and a growing challenge.

Moscow’s forces infiltrated Pokrovsk after months of attacks on the city, a strategic part of Ukraine’s eastern defenses.