Ukraine accuses Russian forces of abducting Melitopol mayor

Pro-Russian troops in uniforms without insignia drive an armoured vehicle with the letters 'Z' painted on it in a residential area of the separatist-controlled town of Volnovakha in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, March 11, 2022. [Alexander Ermochenko/ Reuters]

Ukrainian authorities have accused Russian forces of abducting the mayor of Melitopol, a city in southeastern Ukraine that has fallen under Russian control.

Anton Heraschenko, an adviser to Ukraine’s interior ministry, said 10 soldiers entered the premises of Melitopol’s crisis centre on Thursday, put a bag over Mayor Ivan Fedorov’s head and took him to an unknown location.