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The Russian offensive in the Donbass intensifies and left 10 dead on Monday in Severodonetsk, an important administrative center still under the control of kyiv. In Mariupol, the Ukrainian soldiers stationed in Azovstal, of which more than 260 have already been evacuated on Monday, have “fulfilled their combat mission”, welcomed the staff. Follow our direct dedicated to the day of Tuesday, May 17.
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6:02 a.m.: Hundreds of fighters evacuate Azovstal to Mariupol
A rescue operation of Ukrainian fighters from the huge Azovstal steelworks – the last pocket of resistance against the Russian army in the strategic port of Mariupol – was underway on Tuesday according to kyiv, which now considers that these men have “fulfilled” their mission .
The soldiers of the garrison stationed in Azovstal, of which more than 260 have already been evacuated on Monday, have “fulfilled their combat mission”, welcomed the staff of the Ukrainian army in a press release, and order was given to their commanders to “save the lives” of those left behind.
“Unfortunately, today Ukraine cannot unblock Azovstal by military means,” the Ukrainian defense ministry said on Telegram.
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12:43 a.m.: Fighting intensifies in the east
In Severodonetsk, a city that has become important for Ukrainians since Moscow-backed separatist forces seized part of Donbass (eastern Ukraine) in 2014, “at least 10 people were killed” in Russian bombardments , the governor of the region announced on Monday. This city is almost surrounded by the forces of Moscow.
In a previous message on Monday, Serguiï Gaïdaï had reported artillery strikes on Severodonetsk and its twin city of Lysychank, having caused fires in residential areas.
Despite calls from the Ukrainian authorities to evacuate Lyssytchansk, which is separated from Severodonetsk only by a river, the Siversky Donets, and which is regularly bombed, more than 20,000 civilians – against 100,000 inhabitants before the war – are remained, according to volunteers distributing aid in the area.
Pavlo Kyrylenko, the governor of the neighboring region of Donetsk, for his part announced that nine civilians had been killed on Monday and 16 injured in his region.
In the northeast, the Ukrainians have regained control of part of the border in the Kharkiv region, according to kyiv.
With AFP
France 24-Trans