Russia Claims Dark Victory Over Destroyed City of Mariupol –

Pokrovsky, Ukraine (AP) – What will be its biggest victory The war in Ukraine, Russia claims has captured Mariupol after a nearly three -month siege that has left large parts of the strategic port in smoke rubble. More than 20,000 civilians are feared killed.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced to President Vladimir Putin the “complete liberation” of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol – the last stronghold of Ukrainian resistance – and the city as a whole, spokesman Igor said. Konashenkov on Friday.

There is no immediate confirmation from Ukraine.

Russian state news agency RIA Novosti has accused the ministry of saying a total of 2,439 Ukrainian fighters trapped inside the steel mill have surrendered since Monday, including more than 500 on Friday.

When they surrendered, the troops were captured by the Russians and some were still taken to the former prison colony. Others were taken to the hospital.

The protection of the steel mill was led by Ukraine’s Azov regiment, whose far -right origins were taken by the Kremlin as part of its aggression to combat Nazi influence in Ukraine. Russia said Commander Azov was taken from the factory using an armored car.

Russian authorities have threatened to investigate some of the steel mill defenders for war crimes and bring them to justice, calling them “Nazis” and criminals. This has raised international fears about their fate.

The steel mill, which covers 11 square kilometers (4 square miles), was the scene of intense fighting for several weeks. A small group of armed fighters avoided conducting Russian airstrikes, artillery and tanks until the government ordered them to leave the factory to guard and escape.

The full takeover of Mariupol gives Putin a crucial victory in the war that began on February 24 – a battle that should have been a quick conquest of the Kremlin, but in return was followed by the defeat of the capital Kiev, a withdrawal. Redirect forces to eastern Ukraine and sink the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea fleet.

Military analysts say the capture of Mariupol is more symbolic at this point, as the city is effectively under Moscow’s control and most of the Russian forces intercepted there because of the fighting have already left.

In other developments on Friday, the West moved to Ukraine for billions of dollars in additional aid, and fighting broke out in the Donbas, an industrial center in eastern Ukraine that Putin intended to seize.

Ukrainian authorities say Russian forces bombed an important highway and continued to attack the main city of Lugansk Oblast, attacking a school along with other facilities. Lugansk is part of the Donbass.

The Kremlin seeks to take control of Mariupol to complete the land corridor between Russia and the Crimean peninsula, which it hijacked from Ukraine in 2014, and to free troops to join a broader battle for the Donbas. The loss of the city also deprives Ukraine of an important port.

Mariupol endured some of the most horrific sufferings of the war and became a global symbol of disobedience. About 100,000 people were left in the 450,000 population before the war, many of them trapped without food, water, heat or electricity. The relentless bombing left rows of buildings in ruins or submerged.

In April, satellite images appeared to show mass graves near Mariupol, where local officials accused Russia of hiding the massacre by burying up to 9,000 civilians.

Hundreds of civilians were evacuated from the factory earlier this month during a humanitarian ceasefire and cited the horrific relentless attacks, dangerous underground conditions and fears that they cannot survive.

Once the end of Azovstal was near, the wives of the warriors, fighting in an iron mill, were informed of what they feared would be their last contact with their wives.

Olga Boyko, the sailor’s wife, dried her tears when she said her husband wrote to her on Thursday: “Hello. I give up, I don’t know when I will contact you and whether I will contact you or not. I love you. I’ll kiss you. Until we meet again.”

Natalia Zaritskaya, the wife of another Azovstal fighter, said in a statement she received in the last two days that “they are now going from hell to hell.” Every inch of this road is deadly. “

He said two days ago his wife said that of the 32 soldiers he served, only eight survived, most of them seriously wounded.

While Russia called the removal of the troops from the steel mill a mass surrender, the Ukrainians called it a mission accomplished. They said the fighters captured Moscow forces and prevented them from trying to capture the east.

Mikhail Podoliak, adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, called Mariupol’s defense “the thermopylae of the 21st century” – a reference to one of the most glorious defeats in history, in which 300 Spartans defeated the larger Persian forces in 480. Before. up permanently.

Friday at other events:

– Zelensky said that Russia must pay for all the homes, schools, hospitals and businesses it destroys. He called on Ukraine’s partners to take Russia’s funds and assets under their jurisdiction and use them to create a fund to compensate the victims.

“Russia will feel the true weight of every missile, every bomb, every bullet that fires at us,” he said in a video speech overnight.

-Seven major global economic groups and financial institutions have agreed to allocate more funds to strengthen Ukraine’s finances, with a total of $ 19.8 billion. In the United States, President Joe Biden will sign a $ 40 billion military and economic aid package for Ukraine and its allies.

-Russia will shut down natural gas to Finland on Saturday, the Finnish state-owned energy company said, just days after Finland applied to join NATO. Finland rejected Moscow’s request to pay for gas in rubles. The termination is expected to have no significant immediate effect. According to Finnish broadcaster YLE, natural gas will account for only 6% of Finland’s total energy consumption by 2020.

– A captured Russian soldier accused of killing a civilian awaits his fate at the first trial on war crimes in Ukraine. Sergeant Vadim Shishimarin, 21, will be sentenced to life imprisonment.

– Russian lawmakers have proposed a bill to remove the 40-year age limit for volunteers in Russia’s military service. Currently, all Russian men between the ages of 18 and 27 must complete one year of service, although many receive university referrals and other exceptions.