Children and women who are sheltering in a Mariupol steelworks, the last remaining defender of Ukraine's southern port city, stated in a Saturday video that they are desperate for food and want to escape.
The Azov battalion was created by pro-Ukrainian nationists in 2014. It was later incorporated into Ukraine's national security regiment and played an important role in the defence of Mariupol.
Reuters couldn't independently confirm the date or location of the video. The video's speaker mentions that it was April 21st.
Video footage shows soldiers providing food to civilians sheltering at the Azovstal complex.
A mother holding a baby said that people in the plant were starving.
Russian forces were attacking the Azovstal complex using airstrikes and trying to storm it, Oleksiy Arestovych, the presidential adviser, said Saturday. However, Moscow had stated this week that it would blockade it and not attempt to seize it. According to Ukrainian authorities, more than 1,000 civilians and troops are defending the plant.
An unnamed boy from the video stated that he wanted to escape after two months in the plant.
"I want the sun to shine in my eyes, but it's not as bright here as outside. We can live peacefully when our houses are rebuilt. He said, "Let Ukraine win because Ukraine is our native homeland."
Video of women in uniforms with Azovstal designs, which has been independently confirmed, was shown. File images match the video.
One woman claimed that she was hiding in the steelworks since February 27, which is just days after Russia invaded Ukraine.
"We are the relatives of the workers. She said that this seemed to be the safest area at the time she arrived. "This was also when our house was set on fire and became uninhabitable."
Since the beginning of the war Russian forces have been bombarding and besieging Mariupol. This has left a city home to over 400,000 people in ruin. According to an aide to Mariupol’s mayor, a new attempt to evacuate civilians was unsuccessful on Saturday.
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