Ukraine faces "final war" in the stronghold of Mariupol

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 Ukraine's defense forces in the city of Mariupol could face a final battle with the Russian army, as Moscow wants a symbolic victory before May 9.


Russian and Ukrainian officials on May 7 both confirmed that the evacuation of civilians from the Azovstal iron and steel plant - Ukraine's last stronghold in the city of Mariupol - had been completed. However, the fate of the Ukrainian soldiers still entrenched inside Azovstal remains a mystery.


Kiev is concerned that Russia will increase air strikes, shelling Azovstal again after civilians have been evacuated.


"Russia is trying to get rid of Ukraine's defenses in Azovstal, they try to get there by May 9," Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, said, referring to the milestone. Victory Day is about to take place in Russia.

As a result, Ukrainian soldiers in Mariupol could face the final battle at the Mariupol stronghold in extremely difficult situations, lacking weapons, ammunition, food and medical care.


Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to meet online with G7 leaders today to discuss the general military situation as well as the tense confrontation between Russia and Ukraine in Mariupol. Earlier, Zelensky said, hundreds of civilians have been evacuated from Azovstal and Ukraine in preparation for the second phase of the evacuation operation, prioritizing the wounded and medical staff, of course all soldiers. .


Russia has gained control of most of Mariupol, with the exception of the Azovstal plant site, which has a fortified tunnel system that could withstand a nuclear attack. Despite continuous air strikes and shelling at the factory, the Ukrainian forces entrenched here announced that they would not surrender and would fight to the end.


Mariupol is a strategic port city of Ukraine. If it captured Mariupol, Russia could create a land corridor from eastern Ukraine to the Crimean peninsula, isolating Ukraine from the seas.


In addition to Mariupol, the conflict is also intense in many other regions in eastern Ukraine. Reuters quoted the head of the military unit of the Lugansk region in eastern Ukraine, Serhiy Hayday, today saying that 60 people sheltering in a school in the village of Bilohorivka, Lugansk province may have died after the building was hit. bomb. The official alleges that a Russian plane dropped a bomb on the school site, causing it to be completely destroyed.


"Rescue crews searched for victims in the rubble as quickly as possible. Chances of finding survivors were slim. There were almost 90 people inside the building, 27 people were rescued, 60 people may have died. killed," Hayday said.

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