In Mariupol besieged by Russian occupiers, heavy fighting for the territory of the Azovstal steel plant began again on Wednesday, the Russian occupiers are shelling Ukrainian army positions with artillery, aircraft, tanks and ships, the mayor of the city, Vadim Boychenko said, writes UP.
"Today there are heavy fights on the territory of our fortress - "Azovstal". Our brave guys defend this fortress, but very hard, because they work on this fortress with heavy artillery, work tanks, aviation, ships came up and also extinguish on this fortress," Boychenko said on the air of the national telethon.
At the same time, according to Boychenko, there are still hundreds of civilians on the territory of the combine, of which more than 30 are children, who have been hiding in the shelters of the plant since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
"Unfortunately, today there is no communication with the guys (Ukrainian military at the Azovstal plant). There is no communication to understand what is happening, whether they are safe or not. Yesterday there was still communication, today I can no longer comment on anything," the mayor added.
"We pray for our heroic boys. And thank them for the feat they have already accomplished for our entire country today. They held back the enemy. Gave us more time to prepare. They are real courageous and very heroic defenders of Mariupol. Many thanks to them for that," Boychenko concluded.
