Russia hands over to Ukraine bodies of fighters who died in the Mariupol steel complex

Russia has begun to hand over the bodies of Ukrainian fighters who died at the steel complex in Azovstalin the destroyed city of Mariupol. The extreme resistance of the fighters became a symbol of the resistance against the invasion of Moscow.

Dozens of corpses removed from the plant that is now in the possession of Russia They have been transferred to the Ukrainian capital, kyiv, where DNA analysis is already being carried out to identify them, reported a high-ranking military commander and a spokeswoman for the Azov Regiment.

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The Azov Regiment it was one of the Ukrainian units that defended the plant for nearly three months before surrendering in May to relentless Russian attack from land, sea and air. At the moment it is unknown how many bodies could remain in the plant.

The determined defense of the Ukrainian fighters in the steel mill frustrated the Kremlin’s goal of quickly seizing Mariupol and forced Russia to keep his forces longer in the strategically important port city.

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The fate of the defenders held captive by Russia is clouded by uncertainty. the ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskysaid that there are more than 2,500 fighters from the complex who are prisoners and that Ukraine is negotiating his release.

The Ukrainian government has not announced the recovery of the remains from the ruins of Azovstal and Russian authorities have not commented on the matter, but relatives of soldiers killed at the plant spoke to The Associated Press about the process.

Ukraine announced on Saturday the first official exchange of military dead since the start of the war.. He noted that both sides exchanged 320 bodies in total, each receiving 160. The exchange took place on the front lines of the Zaporizhia region on Thursday.

Anna Holovko, a spokeswoman for the Azov Regiment, said the 160 Ukrainian bodies handed over by the Russians were from the Azovstal ruins. She added that at least 52 of them were believed to be from members of the Azov Regiment.

Source: Elcomercio

Ronald Payne

I, Ronald Payne, am a journalist and author who dedicated his life to telling the stories that need to be said. I have over 7 years of experience as a reporter and editor, covering everything from politics to business to crime.