The devastated city -- which was home to some 60,000 people before Russia's February 2022 full-scale invasion -- has become a key focus of the Kremlin's yearslong push to capture all of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk Oblast, which along with neighboring Luhansk Oblast makes up the Donbas region.

Ukrainian drones have struck a major oil refinery in Russia’s Volgograd region for the second time in nearly three months, according to Ukraine’s general staff.

Good morning and welcome to Thursday’s edition of BBC Verify Live.

The Russian Defense Ministry said Wednesday that Ukrainian troops should surrender to save themselves in Pokrovsk, a transport and supply hub seen as a gateway to bigger nearby cities.

When openly gay soldier Alex Fischuk prepared to defend Ukraine against Russia's forces in February, he feared not only for his own life but also that of his partner, who was also in the army.

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa ordered a probe into how its citizens were recruited to fight as mercenaries in Russia’s war against Ukraine.

The footage shows how Ukraine is scrambling to defend the embattled city from brutal Russian assaults.

Ukraine's military reportedly struck and damaged Russia's Volgograd oil refinery overnight on Nov. 6, Russian Telegram media channels reported, as explosions rocked several Russian energy sites.