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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
World
Chris Hughes & Alice Peacock

Moment Russia fires thermobaric weapons on steelworks as contact lost with defenders

Heroic Ukrainian troops making a last stand in Mariupol have been cut off and hit by a barrage of lung-busting suspected thermobaric bombs.

This is the moment Russian troops bomb the Azovstal plant to “suppress” Ukrainian soldiers who resumed fighting after civilians were allowed to evacuate.

The video was filmed at the Azovstal iron and steel works plant, in the city of Mariupol.

Russian troops stormed the plant on April 19 and destroyed large areas, however, pockets of organised resistance fighters remain at the plant.

Those remaining are refusing to surrender to the Russian demands.

Members of the Azov Battalion, a unit of the National Guard of Ukraine in Mariupol, are said to be based in the plant.

The Azovstal Iron and Steel Works was the last stronghold of Ukrainian forces in Mariupol (@news_mvddnr/Newsflash)

The footage was shared by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the so-called Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) on May 4.

Contact was lost with the Azonstal Steelworks defenders as Russian forces pounded them with missiles and stormed their redoubt with tanks and infantry.

The Mayor of the city Vadym Boichenko confirmed he has “lost contact” with those inside the vast complex and added he no longer knew if “they are safe or not.”

According to the ministry, Ukrainian fighters based in the plant resumed fighting after civilians were allowed to leave.

Russian tankers that contributed to the destruction of the Azovstal plant (@news_mvddnr/Newsflash)

The Azovstal Iron and Steel Works was the last stronghold of Ukrainian forces in the southern port city.

It had been under siege from Russian forces for weeks, and stood even as the rest of the city fell to Putin's troops.

Hundreds of civilians and wounded were said to be trapped down there as well as the troops fighting Russian occupation and there were growing fears of starvation as they began to run low on supplies.

The Azovstal Iron and Steel Works was the last stronghold of Ukrainian forces in the southern port city (@news_mvddnr/Newsflash)

Russia’s Mariupol onslaught came amid fears Russian forces are desperate to wipe out the resistance in advance of a big military parade on May 9.

It marks Victory day and the 1945 defeat of Germany and Russia is considering staging a “sick” parade in the ruined city, cleaning up corpses and faking welcomes from locals.

Fears are growing for around 1,000 remaining Ukrainian troops - many of them wounded - and a few hundred civilians believed to still be there.

It is believed the planned parade was leaked by Ukrainian intelligence which had intercepted Russian phone calls in which the May 9 project was mentioned.

The Mayor of the city Vadym Boichenko confirmed he has 'lost contact' with those inside the vast complex (@news_mvddnr/Newsflash)

Russia has continued to pound targets across Ukraine, targeting supply lines for foreign weapons in the west and intensifying attacks in the east.

Moscow confirmed on Wednesday it used sea- and air-launched precision guided missiles to destroy electric power facilities at five railway stations across Ukraine.

Artillery and aircraft also struck troop strongholds and fuel and ammunition depots.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the DPR showed the destruction of the complex of the Azovstal plant over past days (@news_mvddnr/Newsflash)

The flurry of attacks happened as Russia prepares for its Victory Day on May 9, when President Vladimir Putin may use the occasion to declare a limited victory.

Explosions hit the western city of Lviv on Tuesday evening, close to the Polish border.

The strikes damaged three power substations, knocking out electricity in parts of the city and disrupting the water supply and two people were hurt.

The Mayor of the city Vadym Boichenko confirmed he has 'lost contact' with those inside the vast complex (@news_mvddnr/Newsflash)

Kremlin war planners are desperate to stop western weaponry - much of it from the UK -pouring into Ukraine and helping to blunt Russia's offensive.

In the eastern Donetsk region, which lies in the Donbas, Russian attacks left 21 dead on Tuesday, the highest number of known fatalities since the April 8 missile attack on the railway station in Kramatorsk killed at least 59 people.

The US believes Ukrainians in recent days pushed Russian forces about 25 miles east of Kharkiv, a northeastern city that lies outside the Donbas but is key to the offensive there.

An armed servicemen on top of a Russian army vehicle outside a Ukrainian border guard post (REUTERS)

Ukrainian deputy prime minister Iryna Vereshchuk said authorities on Wednesday plan to continue efforts to evacuate civilians from Mariupol.

Thanks to the evacuation effort over the weekend, 101 people - including women, the elderly, and 17 children, the youngest six months old - emerged from the bunkers under the Azovstal steelworks to "see the daylight after two months", said Osnat Lubrani, the UN humanitarian co-ordinator for Ukraine.

A few hundred civilians also remained there, Ms Vereshchuk, the deputy prime minister, said.

Putin's generals are said to be growing frustrated with the lack of progress in Ukraine (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Troops moving along on the road to Mariupol last month (REUTERS)

In his nightly video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that by storming the steel mill, Russian forces violated agreements for safe evacuations.

He said the prior evacuations are "not a victory yet, but it's already a result. I believe there's still a chance to save other people.”

However on Tuesday, the UN, in corodination with The International Committee of the Red Cross, confirmed 101 people were successfully evacuated from the Azovstal steel plant.

The DPR claimed the “militants” took up firing positions straight after the civilians left the plant and opened fire on Russian troops and DPR fighters.

The footage shows Ukrainian soldiers moving around the plant in tanks and armoured vehicles before Russian bombs rain down, sending large plumes of smoke into the sky.

Russian soldiers walks along a street in Mariupol on April 12 (AFP via Getty Images)

The DPR said they used aerial bombs and artillery ammunition to “suppress enemy activity at Azovstal”.

Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 in what the Kremlin called a "special military operation".

Today marks the 70th day of the campaign.

From February 24 to May 4, the total combat losses of Russian troops stand at around 24,500 personnel, according to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The Ukrainian military also claims that Russia has lost 1,077 battle tanks, 2,610 combat armoured vehicles, 491 artillery systems, 163 MLR systems, 81 anti-aircraft systems, 194 warplanes, 155 helicopters, 1,867 vehicles, 10 vessels, 76 fuel tank trucks, 303 operational-tactical level UAVs, 38 units of special equipment, and 87 cruise missiles have been shot down.

Meanwhile, a host of international organisations have banned Russia, already hit by economic sanctions, from taking part in sporting and cultural events, such as this year’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar, in response to the country’s invasion.

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