A desperate last defense of the besieged steel plant in Mariupol has seen Ukrainian defenders engulfed in flames and smoke.
Grim footage shows huge columns of smoke rising into the air as Russian bombs rain down on the Azovstal plant, where Ukrainian defenders are holed up.
Russian troops stormed the site on April 19th and destroyed large areas. However, pockets of organized resistance fighters remain at the plant, refusing to surrender.
The Azov Regiment, a unit of the National Guard of Ukraine based in Mariupol, said on 5th May: “The assault on Azovstal continues! Fighters defend the plant under heavy fire. The enemy uses aircraft, artillery, and infantry.”
In the video, large columns of smoke are seen filling the sky as bombs explode on different parts of the battered plant.
Russia invaded Ukraine on 24th February in what the Kremlin is calling a “special military operation”.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that from 24th February to 6th May, Russia had lost 24,900 troops, 1,110 tanks, 2,686 armored fighting vehicles, 502 artillery systems, 171 multiple launch rocket systems, 83 anti-aircraft systems, 199 warplanes, 155 helicopters, 1,926 vehicles and fuel tankers, 11 vessels, 324 tactical unmanned aerial vehicles, 38 units of special equipment and 90 cruise missiles.
As the Ukraine-Russian war enters its 72nd day, Russia has claimed victories including the destruction of multiple Ukrainian positions in heavy fighting overnight saying they killed 600 Ukrainian soldiers.
The Kremlin has also gone on the defensive to deny Ukrainian claims that the troops are currently storming the last Mariupol strongholds, and insisted that the humanitarian corridors were still open. Russian President Vladimir Putin has also told Kyiv that they should persuade the troops in the area to lay down their weapons to end the fighting in the besieged city.
They have also accused the West of feeding intelligence to Ukraine to support their fight against what Russia calls a “special military operation”. The US has denied the claim, including the suggestion that they told Ukrainians how they could track down and target Russian generals for assassination by snipers. It was also suggested more recently that intelligence in Washington is what helped Ukraine sink the Russian warship Moskova.
Russia is believed to be desperate to take Mariupol before the May 9 Victory Day parade in Moscow which marks the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany.
So far some 500 civilians have been evacuated from Mariupol and some other areas of southern Ukraine in a rescue operation organized under the auspices of the UN International Red Cross. The numbers were confirmed by the Ukrainian president’s office.
