Ukraine repels Russian attacks as Mariupol plant battle rages

Smoke rises from the Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol. Picture: Alexei Alexandrov/AP

Ukraine’s military said it has recaptured areas in the south and repelled Russian attacks in the east as a battle rages at a steel mill in Mariupol – where Ukrainian troops are holed up in tunnels and bunkers fending off a Russian onslaught.

After 10 weeks of war, Ukrainian and Russian forces are fighting village by village as Moscow struggles to gain momentum in the eastern industrial heartland of the Donbas.