World

PoWs killed by Ukrainian strike: Russia

By AAP Newswire

Jul 29, 2022

Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol during shelling — The Ukrainian troops were taken prisoner after the fighting for the Azov Sea port of Mariupol. -AP

At least 40 Ukrainian prisoners of war captured during the fighting for Mariupol have been killed by Ukrainian shelling, according to Russia's defence ministry and Moscow-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine.

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"A missile strike from the US-made multiple launch rocket system (HIMARS) was carried out on a pre-trial detention centre in the area of the settlement of Olenivka, where Ukrainian military prisoners of war, including fighters from the Azov battalion, are being held," the defence ministry said in its daily briefing.

The ministry said 75 PoWs were wounded in the attack on Friday, but Daniil Bezsonov, a spokesman for the Russia-backed separatists in the Donetsk region, put the number at 130.

Eight prison staff were also hurt, the ministry said.

There was no immediate comment from the Ukrainian authorities to the report.

The Ukrainian troops were taken prisoner after the fierce fighting for Ukraine's Azov Sea port of Mariupol, where they holed up at the giant Azovstal steel mill for months.

The Azov Regiment and other Ukrainian units defended the steel mill for nearly three months, clinging to its underground maze of tunnels.Â

They surrendered in May under relentless Russian attacks from the ground, sea and air.

Scores of Ukrainian soldiers were then taken to prisons in Russian-controlled areas such as the Donetsk region, a breakaway area in eastern Ukraine that is run by Russia-backed separatist authorities.

AP with Reuters