War in Ukraine: Zelensky calls on the UN to save the wounded in Azovstal

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday called on UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to help "save" the wounded at the site of the Azovstal steelworks, besieged and bombarded by Russian troops.

“The lives of the people who remain there are in danger (…) We ask for your help to save them”, indicated Volodymyr Zelensky, quoted by his press service, during a telephone interview with Antonio Guterres while according to kyiv hundreds of soldiers and civilians, including dozens of children, are in underground galleries of this site.

The UN has already participated on Sunday in organizing the evacuation of a hundred civilians trapped in Azovstal with the Ukrainian soldiers who are defending this last pocket of resistance in the strategic port, almost entirely controlled by Russian forces.

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“We lacked food”: in Mariupol, a hundred civilians evacuated from the Azovstal steelworks

Russia, for its part, announced on Wednesday evening that its forces would cease fire on the steelworks and open a humanitarian corridor for three days from Thursday to evacuate civilians.

The Ministry of Defense made no mention of the military, while defenders of Mariupol say several hundred wounded soldiers are at the site.

"Heavy Fighting"

Exiled Mariupol mayor Vadym Boitchenko reported "heavy fighting" in Azovstal earlier today.

Read alsoWar in Ukraine: is the Azovstal site about to fall?

According to him, "heavy artillery, tanks (and) aviation" are at work in this Russian offensive, as well as "ships which approached" the coasts, the Azovstal factory being the along the Sea of ​​Azov.

Russian troops are trying to "destroy" Ukrainian soldiers entrenched in Azovstal, the Ukrainian army said in the evening.

“With air support, the enemy renewed their offensive to take control of the factory compound.

Without success, ”said the army staff on Telegram.