Rescue mission under way at Azovstal as hundreds evacuated
The Hindu
On Monday more than 260 fighters were evacuated through humanitarian corridors to areas under Russian and Moscow-backed separatists' control, with Ukraine's Defence Ministry saying a further "exchange procedure" would take place later
Ukrainian authorities said a rescue mission to extract the last defenders of the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol was under way on May 17, after hundreds of soldiers were evacuated in an earlier operation.
The factory complex had become a symbol of resistance, with around 600 soldiers holed up in underground tunnels and bunkers fighting a rear-guard battle to prevent Russian troops taking full control of the strategically located port city.
On Monday more than 260 fighters were evacuated through humanitarian corridors to areas under Russian and Moscow-backed separatists' control, with Ukraine's Defence Ministry saying a further "exchange procedure" would take place later.
"As for the defenders who still remain on the territory of Azovstal, all necessary rescue measures are being taken by our state," the Ministry said in a Telegram message. "Thanks to the defenders of Mariupol, Ukraine received vital time to accumulate reserves, regroup and mobilise forces and receive assistance from allies," it added.
The Ukrainian Army said in a Facebook statement that holding the steelworks had delayed the transfer of 20,000 Russian troops to other parts of Ukraine, and stopped Moscow from quickly capturing the southern city of Zaporizhzhia.
Despite the resources of its giant neighbour, Ukraine has managed to repel the Russian Army for longer than many expected, fortified by weapons and cash from Western allies. The latest example of this came on Monday, when Ukraine's Defence Ministry announced its troops had regained control of territory on the Russian border near the country's second-largest city of Kharkiv.
The area has been under constant attack and Kyiv's gains have come at a high cost, with villages gutted and destroyed by bombs.
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