Russia says some Azovstal fighters sent to prison camp

The battle that turned Mariupol into a worldwide symbol of defiance and suffering drew toward a close as Russia said nearly 1,000 last-ditch Ukrainian fighters had surrendered.

The fighters who emerged from the ruined Azovstal steelworks after being ordered by their military to abandon the last stronghold of resistance in the now-flattened port city face an uncertain fate.

Some were taken by the Russians to a former penal colony in territory controlled by Moscow-backed separatists.

Ukraine's military made no mention of Mariupol in its early morning briefing on Thursday, saying only that Russian forces were still pressing their offensive on various sections of the front in the east, but were being successfully repelled.

While Ukraine has said it hopes to get the soldiers back in a prisoner swap, Russia threatened to put some of them on trial for war crimes.

It comes the day after the first war-crimes trial held by Ukraine, when a captured Russian soldier pleaded guilty to killing a civilian and faces a possible life in prison.

Amnesty International said the Red Cross should be given immediate access to the fighters.

Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty's deputy director for the region, cited lawless executions allegedly carried out by Russian forces in Ukraine and said the Azovstal defenders “must not meet the same fate.”

Meanwhile, an adviser to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that the country won’t accept any cease-fire until all the Russian troops pull back.

He added that “until Russia is ready to fully liberate occupied territories, our negotiating team is weapons, sanctions and money.”

In the eastern Donbas region, which has been the centre of recent fighting, four civilians were killed in the town of Sievierodonetsk in a Russian bombardment, Luhansk Governor Serhiy Haidai said.

Three other civilians were wounded in the attack on Wednesday, and the shelling continued into early Thursday, he added.

On the Russian side of the border, the governor of Kursk province said a truck driver was killed and several other civilians wounded by shelling from Ukraine.

Separatist authorities in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine said two civilians were killed and five wounded also in Ukrainian shelling over the last 24 hours.

What could now happen to the Ukrainian soldiers who have been evacuated? John Ray reports on the end of battle for Mariupol

It was unclear how many fighters remained inside the plant’s labyrinth of tunnels and bunkers, where 2,000 were believed to be holed up at one point. A separatist leader in the region said no top commanders had emerged from the steelworks.

The plant was the only thing standing in the way of Russia declaring the full capture of Mariupol.

Its fall would make Mariupol the biggest Ukrainian city to be taken by Moscow's forces, giving a boost to Putin in a war where many of his plans have gone awry.

Military analysts, though, said the city's capture at this point would hold more symbolic importance than anything else, since Mariupol is already effectively under Moscow's control and most of the Russian forces that were tied down by the drawn-out fighting have already left.

Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov said 959 Ukrainian troops have abandoned the stronghold since they started coming out Monday.

Ukrainian authorities say they ordered the fighters to save their lives and said the mission to tie up Russian forces by defending the Azovstal plant is complete.

But they have have avoided describing the action of the ones who left the plant as a surrender.

Video showed the fighters carrying out their wounded on stretchers and undergoing pat-down searches before being taken away on buses escorted by military vehicles bearing the pro-Kremlin “Z” sign.

The US has gathered intelligence that shows some Russian officials have become concerned that Kremlin forces in Mariupol are carrying out abuses, including beating city officials, subjecting them to electric shocks and robbing homes, according to a US official familiar with the findings.

The Russian officials are concerned that the abuses will further inspire residents to resist the occupation and that the treatment runs counter to Russia’s claims that its military has liberated Russian speakers, according to the official, who was not authorised to comment.

Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To know...