Russians fight to encircle Ukraine’s last eastern stronghold

Women work to reconstruct a damaged fire department from Russian strikes, in Makariv, Kyiv region (AP)

Russian forces are battling to surround the Ukrainian military’s last stronghold in a long-contested eastern province.

Moscow’s battle to wrest the entire Donbas region from Ukraine saw Russian forces pushing toward two villages south of Lysychansk while Ukrainian troops fought to prevent their encirclement.