Russia's Defence Ministry said on Friday that its forces had taken control of the strategic coal-mining city of Toretsk in eastern Ukraine, but Ukraine's military denied the city had been captured and reported heavy fighting in and around it.

Russia on Friday said that its forces had taken control of the strategic coal-mining city of Toretsk in eastern Ukraine, a claim Ukraine’s military denied. Russia called the city, which had a pre-war population of around 30,

Russia says it has captured the key mining town of Toretsk in eastern Ukraine after months of fighting. Ukraine has already lost the output from a crucial coal mine in the area – the only one producing coking coal for its steel industry.