photo by a representative of the aggressor state
video by a representative of the aggressor state
The 501st Separate Marine Battalion abandoned its section of the defensive line and surrendered. The enemy broke into the Ilyich Iron and Steel Works and the seaport area.
Tough battles continued in the Livoberezhnyi District. On Morskyi Boulevard, Russian tanks and IFVs were shelling the buildings between them and Azovstal. The Russians, who had been stuck there for several days, engaged new forces. The same situation was developing north of Morskyi Boulevard: the distance of one and a half kilometers from Meotydy Boulevard to Peremohy Square became a meat grinder for the enemy.
video from representatives of the aggressor country
In the first half of March, a group led by Lieutenant Colonel Ihor “Mason” Dashko of the State Border Service held the defense in the area between the motor transport college and the fire station on Tahanrozka Street. He took command on March 25, when they had to retreat to the west and Pavlo “Kilya” Kurchenko (Azov) was wounded.
photo by State Border Service
On April 4, Ihor Dashko was wounded in a gunfight near building No. 33 on Pidsnizhna Street. “Mason” blew himself up with a grenade in order to not surrender and prevent the enemy from capturing the radio station. His last words on the air were “Glory to Ukraine!” He was awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine posthumously.
In early April, the key event was the sudden surrender of the 501st Separate Marine Battalion, which was holding the line northeast of the industrial zone of the Ilyich Iron and Steel Works. 277 fighters, that is, the entire battalion except for nine people (including the chief of staff), surrendered. This event worsened the garrison's positions significantly as it was necessary to weaken other areas of defense and urgently relocate forces to an exposed area to rectify the situation. Troops that occupied the abandoned positions of the 501st Separate Marine Battalion claimed that there was enough ammunition left there.
In May 2023, the investigation results were made public. It was determined that the logistic supply officer of the 501st Separate Marine Battalion defected to the enemy. He conspired with the Russians and convinced the battalion commander to surrender. Two hundred seventy-seven military personnel were ordered to relocate but they were in fact transferred to the DPR.
Senior Lieutenant Kostyantyn Bezsmertnyi came in. He told me to get all the weapons and ammunition, we were going out to help our forces in Myrne (on the outskirts of Mariupol). I was surprised and asked: “Should we take our wounded too?” I received an affirmative answer. I clarified: “And what things should we take?” – “Nothing, we won't need anything,” said Bezsmertnyiy.
Natalia came to the hangar at around 11:00 p.m.:
There was a bus waiting. There were 15 people there. Bezsmertnyi came holding a checkered bag. “Put here weapons, cartridges, grenades, knives. Whatever you have,” he ordered. That was weird. [1]
Силы ДНР практически взяли под контроль центральную часть Мариуполя
Басурин: центральная часть Мариуполя находится практически под контролем сил ДНР
To article →Bezsmertnyi ordered us to clean our phones and have our bulletproof vests on. We got into a Ford truck with a canvas-covered trailer. We stopped halfway, and our medics joined us. My platoon commander was driving, and Bezsmertnyi was sitting next to him.
The witness claims that while driving to Myrne, Bezsmertnyi spoke on the radio several times.
And not with friendly forces. I assume those were representatives of the DPR. I heard the call sign “Voron (Raven)” [other marines who surrendered on April 4 and 12-14 also heard that call sign]. That person told us to keep driving.
We drove a little further, and then the car stopped. We all started to get out, and I was almost the last to leave the car. I looked out from the canvas top and saw Russians there. I also saw that our servicemen were already lined up, so I went to them. We were ordered to throw away our documents and phones. We were searched. They found I had a grenade, although without a fuse. They said: “You are now prisoners of war of the DPR and the Russian Federation.” [1]
The video shared by the Russians proved that Senior Lieutenant Kostyantyn Bezsmertnyi was holding a walkie-talkie when leading the marines out. “This is the fifth time you have surrendered,” propagandist Sladkov addressed him. Later, during his conversation with Sladkov, Bezsmertnyi explained why they surrendered: “We don't want victims, bloodshed. We're tired of watching our people die.”
Кадыров сообщил, что в Мариуполе сдались в плен 267 украинских морпехов
По словам главы Чечни, все попавшие в плен украинские военнослужащие находятся в безопасности. Кадыров призвал других военных ВСУ также переходить на российскую сторону
To article →When marines from the 36th Brigade moved into positions abandoned by the 501st Battalion, they noticed a hole in the plant concrete fence. The enemy, supported by armored vehicles, used it to push the defenders back, break through into the territory of the plant, and capture some buildings.
photo by a representative of the aggressor state
video by a representative of the aggressor state
We sailors had led a relatively calm life earlier, but on April 4, the enemy started the assault on the port using tanks and IFVs. We had RPG grenade launchers for anti-tank weapons, while the other units had NLAW rocket launchers and 9K111 Fagot ATGMs. So many were advancing that they often got confused and began friendly fire. One of the tanks, I guess it was not equipped with a thermal viewer, opened random fire in the dark, particularly at a moored merchant ship under a foreign flag. Redis asked to shoot a video that became evidence of the Russians' war crimes.
The attacked vessel was Azburg, a Turkish container ship, flying a Dominican flag. It was moored at the western pier. According to Bohdan “Ravlyk (Snail)” Ravlikovskyi, the commander of the port defense, the ship's captain contacted the 23rd Marine Guard Detachment and sent an SOS signal: “We have a fire on board and a victim.” With the joint efforts of the Azov fighters, the 23rd Marine Guard Detachment, and the National Police, the crew was evacuated and given medical aid.
photo by Bohdan “Ravlyk (Snail)” Ravlikovskyi
