Russia sets 0300 GMT deadline for Ukraine troops in Mariupol to surrender
Zee News
"All who lay down their arms are guaranteed that their lives will be spared," the defence ministry said in a statement.
Kyiv: Russia`s defence ministry has told the Ukrainian forces still fighting in the besieged southern port of Mariupol to lay down their arms starting 6 a.m. Moscow time (0300 GMT) on Sunday to save their lives.
Russia`s earlier claim that its troops had cleared the urban area of Mariupol, scene of the war`s heaviest fighting and worst humanitarian catastrophe, could not be independently verified. It would be the first major city to have fallen to Russian forces since the Feb. 24 invasion.
Moscow said the remaining fighters in Mariupol - who it says are both Ukrainian and foreign - are blockaded in the Azovstal steelworks plant.
"Taking into account the catastrophic situation that has developed at the Azovstal metallurgical plant, as well as being guided by purely humane principles, the Russian Armed Forces offer the militants of nationalist battalions and foreign mercenaries from 06:00 (Moscow time) on April 17, 2022, to stop any hostilities and lay down their arms," the defence ministry said in a statement.
"All who lay down their arms are guaranteed that their lives will be spared."
