Inconsistent air support has left Russia facing considerable challenges, the UK’s ministry of defence says.
Highlights
- Ukrainian soldiers are under siege on the territory of the Azovstal steel plant.
- The number of people holed up in Mariupol is unclear but it’s thought to be hundreds, including some children.
- The fighters’ relatives say the men are exhausted, dirty and hungry with food and water supplies running out.
- They say they’re even ready to act as a human shield if that helps evacuate the men to safety.
- The women are urging the authorities to step-up pressure for a humanitarian corridor for all those trapped in the steelworks, but they stress that time is running out for those trapped on the Russian border.