The Latest Breaking News from Azov

Ukrainian general’s rise from far-right agitator to war hero

SPECIAL DISPATCH: World affairs editor Sam Kiley meets the founder of Ukraine’s ultranationalist Azov movement, Andrii Biletskyi, now a decorated military brigadier general holding Russia back on its most aggressive line of attack in Donetsk province

The Independent UK · May 3

As Ukraine battles to hold lines, Trump may find Putin difficult to persuade

Despite huge numbers of casualties, Russian leader believes he is slowly winning war – so he can afford to string talks out

The Guardian - UK · Aug 14, 2025

Surviving Azovstal: Ukrainian soldiers recall Mariupol siege three years on

In May 2022, over 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers were ordered to surrender from the Azovstal steel plant, Ukraine’s last stronghold during the siege of Mariupol. Euronews spoke to the Ukrainian soldiers who defended the encircled city for 86 days and then fought for their lives in Russian prisons.

Euronews · May 21, 2025

Uncertainty Surrounds Prisoner Exchanges as Plane Crash Sparks Controversy

Discover the fears and concerns of Ukrainian families as Russia and Ukraine trade accusations over the recent plane crash and the future of prisoner exchanges.

Top News · Jan 26, 2024

Azov commanders return home: A diplomatic win for Ukraine, a slap in the face for Russia

When Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky returned from a visit to Turkey last weekend, he did not board the plane alone. Joining him were five former Azov commanders, captured by Russia in the 2022 siege of Mariupol and later handed over to Turkey in a prisoner exchange. Their return to Ukraine…

France 24 · Jul 12, 2023

Ukrainian held in prison cell for 120 days by Russians feared 'he'd never come back'

Lt Ilya Samoilenko was seized when Russian troops captured the Azovstal steelworks before being transported to a secret facility in Russia where he was held in solitary confinement for 120 days, he claims

Daily Mirror · Oct 13, 2022

Ukraine frees Putin ally in swap deal for hundreds of troops

Ukraine handed over a key ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin in exchange for hundreds of prisoners of war including many captured in a landmark battle, a swap that outraged pro-Kremlin propagandists.

Tribune News Service · Sep 22, 2022

‘Absolute evil’: inside the Russian prison camp where dozens of Ukrainians burned to death

Entrepreneur Anna Vorosheva accuses Moscow of murder after spending 100 days in the Olenivka detention centre

The Guardian - UK · Aug 6, 2022

100 days of the Russia-Ukraine war: A battle of beliefs

Over three months into Moscow’s invasion, Al Jazeera’s reporter in Kyiv looks at what is left of the countries’ ties.

Al Jazeera · Jun 2, 2022

How the capture of Azov fighters affects the Russia-Ukraine war

The war’s post-apocalyptic poster boys are seen in a totally different light in the Kremlin and on Russian TV.

Al Jazeera · May 19, 2022