KYIV: Russian forces are fighting to surround the war-battered frontline town of Avdiivka and capture a strategically-located factory nearby, a Ukrainian military spokesman said Friday.

The industrial hub in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region has long been a symbol of Ukrainian resistance after it was briefly captured by pro-Russian forces in 2014.

“(Russian forces) are not only fighting for the plant, they have not given up trying to surround Avdiivka,” Oleksandr Shtupun, a Ukrainian military spokesman told state media.

He said Ukrainian forces were repelling Russian assaults on the large chemical plant and that the facility was under their control.

He added that Russian forces were routinely striking Avdiivka with artillery and military jets, saying a bombardment late Thursday had killed two civilians.

“The bodies are now under the rubble,” Shtupun said.

Ukrainian officials said earlier this week they were bracing for a third wave of attacks from Russian forces, which began storming the city about one month ago.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky this week described Avdiivka as one of the “hottest” areas on the frontline.

Avdiivka has been almost completely destroyed by nine years of fighting. Despite coming under daily artillery fire, around 1,500 of the city’s 30,000 pre-war residents remain, living mainly in basements converted into bomb shelters.