Initially Printed: 17 APR 22 06:19 ET
Up to date: 17 APR 22 11:24 ET
By Jessie Yeung, Tim Lister, Darya Tarasova, Julia Kesaieva, Manveena Suri and Ivana Kottasová, CNN
(CNN) — Ukrainian forces besieged in Mariupol have rejected Russia’s calls for to give up and are nonetheless resisting an unrelenting assault on the southeastern port metropolis, high Ukrainian officers mentioned on Sunday.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal mentioned the town, which has been surrounded by Russian troops since March 1, has not fallen. Ukrainian troops trapped within the metropolis are holding out in opposition to the Russian onslaught regardless of overwhelming odds. However they’re confined to pockets of resistance, and their numbers are unclear.
“There are nonetheless our army forces, our troopers so they’ll struggle till the top and as for now they’re nonetheless in Mariupol,” Shmyhal mentioned on ABC News’ “This Week” after a Russian-set deadline for Kyiv’s forces within the metropolis to give up handed on Sunday.
An adviser to the mayor of Mariupol additionally rejected the Russian ultimatum earlier on Sunday. Petro Andriushchenko mentioned on Telegram that “as of immediately, our defenders proceed to carry the protection.”
Russia’s Ministry of Protection has known as on the Ukrainian troopers nonetheless in Mariupol to give up by 1 p.m. native time on Sunday, warning that anybody nonetheless resisting after the deadline “might be eradicated.” The ministry has later confirmed that the ultimatum had been ignored.
In a press release, the Russian ministry mentioned that the surrounded Ukrainian troopers “have been provided to voluntarily lay down arms and give up to be able to save their lives.”
“Nonetheless, the Kiev nationalist regime, in line with the radio intercept, forbade negotiations about surrendering,” the Ministry claimed.
It additionally asserted that in line with Ukrainian troopers who had beforehand surrendered “there are as much as 400 overseas mercenaries who joined the Ukrainian forces” trapped on the plant, together with Europeans and Canadians. “In case of additional resistance, all of them might be eradicated,” it mentioned.
Shmyhal mentioned that regardless of the relentless Russian assaults, “not one massive metropolis in Ukraine has fallen.”
Solely Kherson is underneath management of Russian army forces however all the remainder of the cities are underneath Ukrainian management,” he mentioned, including that among the cities within the surrounding areas have been “besieged however nonetheless underneath Ukrainian management.”
He mentioned that greater than 900 Ukrainian cities, cities and villages had been free of Russian occupation since Moscow took management after the invasion started in late February.
“We nonetheless are preventing and now we have battle in Donbas area proper now however we do not need intention to give up,” Shmyhal mentioned.
The state of affairs in Mariupol is determined. A lot of the town has been fully destroyed by Russian shelling. Civilian buildings which have been focused included a maternity hospital and a theater the place as much as 1,300 individuals had been looking for refuge.
The army governor of Ukraine’s Donetsk area, the place Mariupol is situated, mentioned on Tuesday as much as 22,000 individuals might have died within the metropolis. CNN can’t confirm these figures, as there are not any unbiased casualty figures from the preventing within the metropolis obtainable.
Although many have fled, an estimated 100,000 individuals nonetheless stay in Mariupol and its speedy environment, that are reported to be largely underneath Russian management.
In response to Russian state media, a lot of the Ukrainian defenders are situated within the Azovstal metal works, one of many largest such crops in Europe with a community of rail tracks and furnaces. Andriushchenko mentioned resistance to the Russians continued past this plant.
“Regardless of the occupiers’ want to point out that the place of hostilities is restricted to the Azovstal Metal Plant, that is doesn’t correspond with actuality,” Andriushchenko mentioned. “Final night time there have been fights on the Taganrog Road that’s situated 5 kilometers away from Azovstal.”
He mentioned that “through the preventing, the occupiers shelled personal residential homes with heavy artillery once more. The shelling of the port space additionally continued.”
On Saturday throughout a late-night deal with, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zekensky known as the state of affairs in Mariupol “inhuman” and “as extreme as attainable.” He and his administration had been making an attempt on daily basis to finish the siege by means of each army and diplomatic channels, he mentioned.
“Russia is intentionally making an attempt to destroy everybody who’s there in Mariupol,” he mentioned within the video deal with.
In a separate article posted on the presidential web site, Zelensky mentioned he was open to talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin — however negotiations could be not possible if additional Russian warfare crimes floor.
On Friday, the Russian army claimed it had made advances into Mariupol. “The grouping of Russian troops and items of the Donetsk individuals’s militia have fully liberated Illich Steelworks from Ukrainian nationalists on account of the offensive in Mariupol metropolis,” mentioned Russian army spokesperson Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov in a press release. CNN can’t independently confirm that declare.
This got here two days after the final remaining defenders in Mariupol carried out a “dangerous maneuver” to affix forces and consolidate their defenses, in line with Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych. Each items have been concerned in a last-ditch try to withstand the Russian offensive.
Nonetheless, one of many unit commanders in Mariupol acknowledged that some Ukrainian defenders had surrendered.
In a press release earlier this week, members of the Ukrainian Marines posted a video assertion vowing to struggle on “till the top,” regardless of being surrounded by Russian forces and working low on provides. “We didn’t surrender our positions,” the Marines mentioned within the video.
Ukrainian officers have warned of a serious humanitarian emergency in Mariupol as meals and water run out, with electrical energy and fuel reduce, urging the institution of evacuation corridors to permit civilians to flee.
However a number of makes an attempt have failed — together with an evacuation effort on Saturday, with moist climate halting operations. Buses have been unable to journey by means of a washed-out part of highway between the city of Vasylivka and Zaporizhzhia to its north, in line with a social media publish by Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk.
As a substitute, individuals leaving Mariupol, Berdiansk, Tokmak and Enerhodar cities have been instructed to get to Zaporizhzhia themselves.
No evacuation routes are deliberate for Sunday as a result of Ukrainian officers have been unable to agree routes with the Russians. Vereshchuk mentioned on her Telegram channel: “We once more demand offering the humanitarian hall to evacuate civilians, particularly ladies and kids from Mariupol.”
She added: “By way of the related worldwide organisations we additionally demand from the occupiers to open a particular hall for the evacuation of wounded troopers from Mariupol.”
Vereshchuk mentioned on Saturday that 170 individuals did handle to flee from Mariupol to Zaporizhzhia with their very own technique of transport of Saturday — however most of Mariupol’s residents stay caught within the metropolis, going through fixed bombardment.
The-CNN-Wire
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