The mayor of Mariupol on Friday issued a desperate appeal to the international community to save those trapped at the steel plant that has become the last detention center for Ukrainian fighters and civilians.
His plea comes two days after Russian forces allegedly bombed an underground field hospital at the Azovstal factory, where people were taking shelter in bunkers.
“If Mariupol is hell, Azovstal is worse,” the mayor, Vadym Boychenko, said at a video-linked news conference on Friday. He said more than 600 people were injured – including soldiers and civilians – at the Azovstal complex.
“They’ve been there for more than 60 days and they’re begging for help,” he said, recalling that supplies of water, medicine and ammunition were quickly running out. “It’s not a matter of the day, it’s a matter of the hour.”
As conditions at the plant worsened, the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, visited Kyiv on Thursday to try to establish corridors for civilians to exit the plant. from Azovstal will be possible. “This is a top priority,” she said in a Telegram post.
In his ceremonial overnight address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia would need to “really do” as it promised and establish a ceasefire in Mariupol to allow for evacuation.
Previous agreements to evacuate civilians or bring vital aid into the city have largely failed, with Russian units sometimes stopping or firing at aid convoys.
“Moscow announced they were supposed to have a ceasefire in Mariupol. But the bombing raids on the defenders of the city continued,” Mr. Zelensky said.
Ukrainian officials say Russian forces used bunker bombs in the attack on the factory, which hit an underground field hospital. Ukrainian fighters at the plant posted a video that they said showed the hospital being bombed, but could not independently confirm the time or location.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine said on Thursday night that the attack killed and wounded dozens of soldiers who had been wounded in violation of the Geneva Conventions.
It retweeted video of the fighters on Telegram, which appeared to show the immediate aftermath of Wednesday night’s attack, with bandaged people seen on hospital beds, covered in dust and rubble broken.
Russian President Vladimir Putin declared victory in Mariupol last week despite the protracted fighting there, openly calling for an attack on Ukraine’s last stronghold in the ravaged city, clearly demonstrating Kremlin’s desire to present a success in front of the Russian public.
In a speech on Friday, Mr. Boychenko, the mayor, accused Russian forces of continuing to indiscriminately bomb civilian infrastructure across Mariupol. “The city is destroyed,” he said.
About 20,000 civilians were killed, he said, but denied that the city had been completely conquered. “Mariupol is holding and continues to hold,” he added.
