KYIV, Ukraine — Russia said Thursday that more than 1,700 Ukrainian fighters had surrendered at a steel plant in the conquered city of Mariupol, even as Ukraine claimed battlefield gains elsewhere, continued its first war crimes trial against a Russian soldier and prepared to launch a second.
The Ukrainian soldiers in Mariupol, Russia said, had been taken to a pretrial detention center and at least several commanders remained inside the Azovstal steelworks, which has become a symbol of resistance in the protracted war. The plant was Ukraine’s last redoubt in the devastated port city, whose capture has given Russia a key territorial gain along the southern coast.
The International Red Cross said it had logged information on “hundreds” of Ukrainian prisoners of war from the Azovstal facility. The humanitarian group said its effort was part of an agreement between Ukraine and Russia that began when Ukraine gave up its fight at the plant Tuesday.
