Russia airs chilling footage after claiming over 1000 Ukrainian soldiers surrendered in Mariupol

Russia has aired chilling footage of what it says is more than a thousand Ukrainian soldiers giving themselves up in Mariupol, a strategic port city in Ukraine.

Russia’s defence ministry said more than a thousand Ukrainian soldiers have “surrendered” in Mariupol, a strategic port city in eastern Ukraine that has been besieged by Moscow’s troops for over a month.

The Russians are incredibly close to capturing the city — potentially the first major landmark to fall since February 4 — and holds the key to the next phase of the war.

Mariupol is critical for Russia because it provides a connecting pathway between Russia’s south and east; occupied Crimea and Moscow-backed separatist territories Donetsk and Lugansk in Donbas.

Footage was broadcast on Russian television of what it said was Ukrainian troops giving themselves up.

Unarmed men could be seen walking with their hands up. Another person was carried on a stretcher by four others, while one held a makeshift white flag.

Footage shown on Russian television of what it said was Ukrainian soldiers surrendering.

In one clip, according to Reuters, an unidentified Russian soldier said: “You may be scared or not, but it is necessary to surrender anyway. The choice is not a big one. First, the encircling is tight enough. Second, there are at least five echelons (of troops), so it is not that simple to exit if someone would think that he can easily leave.”

In another clip, more than a dozen soldiers were lined up in a dark room with their heads tilted towards the ground. Some were shown to be injured.

One of them said: “I was in a group of 13 to 15 men who moved together and survived. We had to surrender as we had been encircled.”

One clip showed soldiers lined up in a dark room.

Russia has been relentless is its military operation and has laid siege to Mariupol since the start of its military operation with reports that bodies lie in the ruins of the streets.

Russia’s Deputy Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to UN Office in Geneva Alexander Alimov posted a picture and video from Telegram appearing to confirm the surrender.

‼️🇷🇺MoD: in #Mariupol near the "Illich" Steelworks 1026 🇺🇦 servicemen, incl. 162 officers of the 36th Marine Brigade laid down arms & surrendered as a result of a successful offensive by the 🇷🇺AF and the Donetsk PR units.https://t.co/9MI45heIJP
🎥 https://t.co/RCGlL2cHFIpic.twitter.com/YbqcGq2ewu

— Alexander Alimov (@A__Alimov) April 13, 2022

“In the city of Mariupol... 1,026 Ukrainian servicemen of the 36th marine brigade voluntarily laid down their arms and surrendered,” Russian Defense Ministry Spokesman Major-General Igor Konashenkov said.

The ministry said that the soldiers surrendered near the “Mariupol Metallurgical Plant named after Illich”, a large steel factory.

Among the troops were 162 officers and 47 were women, the ministry added.

More than 150 wounded received “primary medical assistance at the scene, following which all of them were taken to the Mariupol city hospital for medical treatment”, the general said.

A soldiers stands in a street in Severodonetsk, in eastern Ukraine's Donbass region, on Wednesday. Picture: Ronaldo Schemidt / AFP

Reports are so far vague from Ukraine but the strongest response has come from the BBC who claim “Ukraine says the city is still standing despite being under siege”.

A Ukraine defence spokesman told Reuters they had no information on a surrender while Ukraine’s general staff reportedly said that Russian forces were continuing with their attacks on Azovstal and the port.

In his latest speech overnight Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky said the country was in need of additional weapons, warning Russia “still has the capacity to attack”.

“Without additional weapons, this war will turn into an endless bloodbath that will spread misery, suffering and destruction. Mariupol, Bucha, Kramatorsk – the list goes on,” he said. “No one will stop Russia except Ukraine with heavy weapons.”

Two Russian soldiers patrol in the Mariupol drama theatre, bombed last March 16, in Mariupol. Picture: Alexander Nemenov / AFP

President Zelensky said earlier this week he believed Russia was responsible for the deaths of “tens of thousands” of people.

Thirteen mobile crematoriums in #Mariupol. Ukrainian intelligence reports that the Russian leadership has ordered its military to destroy evidence of their war crimes. All potential witnesses are sent to what intelligence calls “filtration camps.” Witnesses disappear there.

— Alexander Khrebet/Олександр Хребет (@AlexKhrebet) April 13, 2022

Donetsk region governor Pavlo Kyrylenko estimated on Tuesday that between 20,000 and 22,000 people had died in the city.

Kyiv officials said last month that as early as the beginning of March the confirmed deaths were already around 5,000 but by that point it could already have been as high as 10,000.

Ukraine’s human rights ombudswoman on Thursday claimed Russia was utilising 13 mobile crematoria to “clean the streets from the bodies of dead civilians”, efforts that if confirmed would make establishing an accurate toll in the city all the more difficult.

Meanwhile US President Joe Biden accused Vladimir Putin of committing genocide against civilians in Ukraine, as Kyiv halted humanitarian corridors in several parts of the country deemed “too dangerous” for evacuations.