A storm of steel
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RUSSIAN troops began storming the sprawling steel plant in besieged Mariupol yesterday as 101 civilians were evacuated to the relative safety of a Ukrainian-controlled city.
Hundreds are left stranded in the Azovstal complex amid fears Moscow’s forces are moving in for the kill after months of Ukrainian defence.
The attack happened as a convoy of evacuees from the plant arrived in Ukrainian-controlled Zaporizhzhia, 140 miles north-west. As well as 101 evacuated from the steelworks, another 58 people joined the convoy in a town on the outskirts of Mariupol.
The plant – where 1000 civilians sought shelter along with 2000 fighters – has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance to Putin’s invasion.
Osnat Lubrani, UN humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, said: “Thanks to the operation, 101 women, men, children, and older persons could finally leave the bunkers below the steelworks and see daylight after two months.”
Dr Dorit Nizan, World Health Organization incident manager for Ukraine, said from Zaporizhzhia by Zoom: “We are ready for burns, fractures and wounds, as well as diarrhoea, respiratory infections. We are also ready to see if there are pregnant women, children with malnutrition. We are all here. The health system is well prepared.”
In Mariupol, 64-year-old resident Tatyana Bushlanova is so used to
Russian bombardments that she does not flinch when shells explode. She said: “You wake up in the morning and you cry. You cry in the evening.
“I don’t know where to go at all… everything is destroyed, everything is broken. Where should people go?”
At least 10 people were killed and 15 wounded by Russian shelling of a coking plant in the city of Avdiivka in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine yesterday, the regional governor said.
“The Russians knew exactly where they were aiming,” Donetsk governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said.
“The workers had just finished their shift and were waiting at the bus stop for a bus to take them home.”
Russia did not comment on the incident. It denies targeting civilians. Last night, it was feared Russia is preparing to blame Kyiv for a potential cholera outbreak in eastern Ukraine.
A combination of contaminated water and food could spark an epidemic, and intelligence officers believe Moscow would accuse Ukraine of a bio-attack.
The Ukrainian main intelligence directorate says Russian officials are already preparing for a Cholera outbreak by restricting mass gatherings.
The Ukrainian MoD warned Russia will likely launch a “false flag” bio-attack claim towards the end of May or in June.
It said: “The Russian Federation may be involved in provocations in border areas with Ukraine.
“Responsibility for this traditionally will attempt to translate to Ukraine.”