Fall of Mariupol at hand as fighters leave steel plant
Withdrawal gives Russia an unbroken land bridge to the Crimean Peninsula
Mariupol was on the verge of falling to the Russians yesterday as Ukraine moved to abandon the steel plant where hundreds of fighters had held out for months under relentless bombardment in the last bastion of resistance in the devastated city.
The capture of Mariupol would make it the biggest city to be taken by Moscow’s forces in the war yet.
Gaining full control of Mariupol would give Russia an unbroken land bridge to the Crimean Peninsula, which it seized from Ukraine in 2014, and deprive Ukraine of a vital port.
It could also free up Russian forces to fight elsewhere in the Donbas, the eastern industrial heartland that the Kremlin is bent on capturing.
And it would give Russia a victory after repeated setbacks on the battlefield and the diplomatic front, beginning with the abortive attempt to storm Kyiv, the capital.
More than 260 Ukrainian fighters — some of them seriously wounded and taken out on stretchers — left the ruins of the Azovstal plant on Tuesday and turned themselves over to the Russian side in a deal negotiated by the warring parties. An additional seven buses carrying an unknown number of Ukrainian soldiers from the plant were seen arriving at a former penal colony yesterday in the town of Olenivka, approximately 88km north of Mariupol.
While Russia called it a surrender, the Ukrainians said the plant’s garrison had successfully completed its mission to tie down Russian forces and was under new orders.
“To save their lives. Ukraine needs
them. This is the main thing,” Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said.
The Ukrainians expressed hope that the fighters would be exchanged for Russian prisoners of war.
But Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the lower house of the Russian Parliament, claimed there were “war criminals” among the defenders and they should be tried.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine was working to extract its remaining troops from the sprawling steel mill.
Officials have not said how many remain inside.
The soldiers who left the plant
were searched by Russian troops, loaded onto buses accompanied by Russian military vehicles, and taken to two towns controlled by Moscowbacked separatists. More than 50 of the fighters were seriously wounded, according to both sides.
It was impossible to confirm the total number of fighters brought to Olenivka or their legal status.
Russia’s main federal investigative body said it intends to interrogate the troops to “identify the nationalists” and determine whether they were involved in crimes against civilians.
Also, Russia’s top prosecutor asked the country’s Supreme Court to designate Ukraine’s Azov Regiment, whose members have been holding out at Azovstal, a terrorist organisation.
The Azov Regiment was formed as a paramilitary volunteer group in May 2014 out of the ultra-nationalist Patriot of Ukraine gang, and the neoNazi Social National Assembly group.
It’s members have been described as ultra-nationalists and accused of harbouring neo-Nazi and white supremacist ideologies.
Kyiv says the Azov militia was folded into Ukraine’s National Guard — a military wing of the Interior Ministry — and that it has been reformed away from its radical nationalist origins.
Elsewhere across the Donbas, seven civilians were killed in Russian attacks in the Donetsk region, regional Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko reported. In the Luhansk region, Russian soldiers fired rockets on an evacuation bus carrying 36 civilians, but no one was hurt, Governor Serhii Haidai said.
Zelenskyy said Russian forces fired missiles at the western Lviv region and the Sumy and Chernihiv regions in the northeast, and carried out airstrikes in the eastern Luhansk region.
Russian officials in Belgorod and Kursk, which border Ukraine, accused Kyiv of shelling villages and civilian infrastructure along the frontier, the latest in a series of similar accusations in recent weeks.
In other developments, the chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, said he sent a team of 42 investigators and forensic experts to Ukraine to look into suspected war crimes. Ukraine has accused Russian forces of torturing and killing civilians.
The World Health Organisation has verified 226 attacks on health facilities in Ukraine — almost three per day on average — since the Russian invasion began, according to the agency’s Europe director, Hans Kluge.
The targeted strikes have killed at least 75 people and wounded 59, he said.
East Coast Plumbing & Gas are one team offering a variety of services for both residential and commercial. Chat to the team at the show to learn more about their services, including heating your home with radiators. Water Central Heating can be used with wall radiators to heat your house. Radiators are installed across your home and circulate hot water that is heated from a central heating heat source.
There is plenty to tease the taste buds with food you can enjoy at the Show as well as treats you can take home! Check out Automatic Bakery and their Half baked bread! Always a crowd pleaser, these delicious loaves are designed so you can have HOT FRESH BREAD when you want it! Deliberately HALF BAKED when you buy them, leaving the last 10 minutes in your capable hands. Alongside their delicious condiments they turn average into interesting and boring into banging. Check them out at the Show and take home a little bit of deliciousness!
Gin lovers will enjoy checking out Juno Gin – award winning New Zealand artisan gin at its finest. Juno Gin will charm your most ordinary occasion into something truly magical. Juno is the handiwork of Taranaki husbandand-wife duo Jo and Dave James. They met at primary school in New Plymouth and four years ago, left their careers and combined their science backgrounds and passion for gin to start dreaming and experimenting to craft their ideal gin.
He may not have won the $50,000 but that didn’t stop him going through with his business idea! You might recognize Stephen McDowell, the finalist in The Apprentice Aotearoa! Stephen will be joining us at the Hawke’s Bay Better Home and Living Show with his new coffee product, Rude Health Coffee (formerly known as NOO Coffee) for you to try yourself.
There is a wonderful range of NZ made products on display at the Show this year. Premium Puzzles are a wholly New Zealand owned and operated business designing and manufacturing wooden jigsaw puzzles, each with a Kiwi twist. These are the perfect gift for a friend or treat for you! Keep warm this winter with Jane Shand designed garments, especially created from locally sourced merino. Each garment is presented in a recycled and recyclable card storage box, complete with the story about its origin. All 100% natural merino fibre traceable to one farm. Check out some of these stunning products at the Show and support an entirely New Zealand made and ethically produced product.
There is a lovely range of artists showcasing their products this year including Lauren Claire Art, Acryclics By Nicole, Natach’Art, Vinyl Revamp and Sophie Blokker. First time exhibitor Laruen Claire Art is a mixed media artist who is discovering her love for textures, alcohol ink, resin, plaster art, glass art and more. Raised in Hawke’s Bay, Lauren has always spent lots of time outside enjoying nature. From the different hues of blue in the ocean nearby, or the vast variety of colour in the flowers, to the beauty within the night sky, inspiration all around her has influenced her art pieces. View some of these stunning works at the Show.
The show has a fantastic line up of ‘Ask An Expert’ sessions providing the perfect opportunity to learn more, ask questions and walk away informed and inspired for your next project or with tips on improving your home and lifestyle. Sessions include “De-cluttering and Organising your Home” with Rochelle Sudfelt from ReclaimYou, “Switch on to Solar Savings for your Home & Business” with Aaron Duncan - Freenergy Solar Solutions and more.
Win with OH Bubbles at Show OH Bubbles can carbonate any beverage anytime, anywhere you like. Quickly and easily carbonate Fresh Fruits , water, juices, iced tea, coffee, energy drinks, wine, cocktails, Kombucha and even flat soda or beer. OH-Bubbles Natural Soda Syrups have around 80% less sugar than regular Main Stream soda, and each syrup bottle makes between 7-9 Litres of drink, saving a bunch of plastic from the landfill. Enter your details at the door to win the Ultimate OH Bubbles pack valued at $500, along with a $250 Resene voucher.
Kids and Adults will enjoy getting creative with the Resene Paint-A-Birdhouse from 11 – 2 on Friday and
Saturday. With a wide range of products and services, expert advice, stacks of show only specials and prizes to be won, the Hawke’s Bay Better Home and Living Show is the place to be this weekend!
Solutions for sustainable home, garden and better living, packed with inspiration, advice and show-only bargains - just a taste of what home enthusiasts can expect at the Hawke’s Bay Better Home and Living Show opening tomorrow! Door sales available or buy online at www. betterhomeandlivingshow.co.nz