Nearly 1,000 Ukraine fighters left steel plant
KYIV: The Russian Defence Ministry says that nearly 1,000 Ukrainian troops holed up in their last stronghold in Mariupol have handed themselves over.
Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Maj-gen Igor Konashenkov said yesterday that 694 Ukrainian soldiers at the Azovstal steel plant have surrendered over the past 24 hours. That brings the total of Ukrainian troops who have left the plant this week to 959.
The Russian Defence Ministry reported Tuesday that 265 Ukrainian troops, including 51 wounded, had surrendered during the previous 24 hours.
Ukrainian authorities did not confirm the latest numbers.
Konashenkov said that there were 29 wounded soldiers among the 694 troops who had surrendered over the past 24 hours.
The fighters extracted from the last bastion of resistance in Mariupol were taken to a former penal colony in enemy-controlled territory, and a top military official hoped they could be exchanged for Russian prisoners of war.
But a Moscow lawmaker said they should be brought to “justice.”
The Russian parliament planned to take up a resolution to prevent the exchange of Azov Regiment fighters, who held out for months inside the Azovstal steelworks plant while Mariupol was under siege, according to Russian news agencies.
Ukraine’s deputy defence minister, Hanna Maliar, said negotiations for the fighters’ release were ongoing, as were plans to rescue fighters who are still inside the sprawling steel mill. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said “the most influential international mediators are involved” in the plans. Officials have not said how many remain inside.
Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman said the Russian military was also holding more than 3,000 civilians from Mariupol at another former penal colony near Olenivka.
Ombudsman Lyudmyla Denisova said most civilians are held for a month, but those considered “particularly unreliable”, including former soldiers and police, are held for two months.