The siege of the Azovstal factory in Mariupol is still in progress. Inside are still soldiers trying to defend the complex, but it seems that they too are losing heart. Commander Serhi Volynsky gives another cry for help on Facebook: “I can only hope for a miracle,” he writes.
Mariupol, the southern port city in Ukraine, has actually already fallen. Only an enclave in the Azovstal factory – which is difficult to conquer due to a large network of underground passages – will survive. Civilians also take shelter in the complex, where soldiers try to hold on to the last item they have in their hands.
hellish reality show
Serhi Voynsky tells us how he feels on Facebook from the factory. “It looks like I’m on a hellish reality show where soldiers are fighting for their lives and trying to save themselves. But meanwhile, the whole world is watching a fascinating story. A screenplay like this is actually one for movies and series. Only it is not a movie and we are not fictional characters. This is real life. Pain, suffering, hunger, torment, tears, fear, death: all real!”
Attached to the post is a black-and-white photo of Volynsky looking beaten up: his nose appears to be broken. “I hope that the higher forces in the broad sense of the word find a solution to our salvation!” Voynsky writes. “And that this infernal reality show will end…” The commander concludes with a question: “We did everything we could to save civilians, we ask that everyone do their best to evacuate us.”
The latter does not seem to be so obvious. Russia has already announced that it will imprison all military personnel at the factory. Ukrainian President Zelensky also said rescuing the fighters will be “very difficult”, but that he hopes humanitarian corridors can still be established.