According to Russia’s defence ministry, 265 Ukrainian soldiers, including several dozen wounded, surrendered at the besieged Azovstal steel complex in Ukraine’s coastal city of Mariupol on Tuesda
“In the last 24 hours, 265 militants put down their guns and surrendered, including 51 who were severely injured,” the ministry stated in a briefing.
Those in need of medical attention were moved to a hospital in the town of Novoazovsk, according to the statement.
After a weeks-long siege, Moscow claimed possession of Mariupol last month, but hundreds of Ukrainian forces remained holed up in subterranean tunnels beneath the massive Azovstal industrial zone, which Russian troops had closed.
Ukraine’s defence ministry announced late Monday that 264 Ukrainian fighters, including 53 “heavily wounded,” had been evacuated to Russia-controlled territory.
Ganna Malyar, Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister, stated that they will be subject to a “exchange procedure.”
