Today will be ‘last battle’ for Mariupol as ammunition is ‘running out’, Ukraine says
Ukrainian forces say they are readying themselves for a “last battle” to control the besieged southern Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, AFP reports.
In a statement on Facebook, the 36th marine brigade of the Ukrainian armed forces said:
Today will probably be the last battle, as the ammunition is running out.
After defending the port for 47 days and doing “everything possible and impossible” to retain control of the city, the marines said it had been “pushed back” and “surrounded” by the Russian army, adding:
It’s death for some of us, and captivity for the rest.
Russian forces have said fighting has recently centred around Mariupol’s Azovstal iron and steel works and in the port.
The marines said that is where “the enemy gradually pushed us back” and “surrounded us with fire, and is now trying to destroy us”.
The mountain of wounded makes up almost half of the brigade. Those whose limbs are not torn off return to battle.
The infantry was all killed and the shooting battles are now conducted by artillerymen, anti-aircraft gunners, radio operators, drivers and cooks. Even the orchestra.
It complained that there was a lack of support from Ukraine’s military leadership “because we’ve been written off”.
The south-eastern city of Mariupol has seen the most intense fighting since Russia launched its assault on Ukraine. Earlier today, the Ukraininan president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said tens of thousands of people had likely been killed in the city.
Zelenskiy told the South Korean parliament via video link:
Mariupol has been destroyed, there are tens of thousands of dead, but even despite this, the Russians are not stopping their offensive.
Updated at 12.40 BST
