‘They hunt us like stray cats’: pro-Russia separatists step up forced conscription as losses mount

Footage emerges of Ukrainian citizens in occupied Donbas being press-ganged to fight for Moscow

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Pro-Russia separatist forces have stepped up the forced conscription of men - including Ukrainian passport holders - in occupied areas of the Donbas region, amid mounting evidence of the scale of losses on the Russian side.

According to credible evidence from the region, forced conscription - already a feature of the Russian-backed separatists' rule before the Kremlin's invasion on 24 February - appeared to have picked up again in June, with checkpoints and patrols, some reportedly involving Chechen fighters allied to the Kremlin, on the lookout for men to recruit.