Mariupol fighters in Russian hands; both sides claim wins

FILE – A Russian military convoy moves on a highway in an area controlled by Russian-backed separatist forces near Mariupol, Ukraine, on April 16, 2022. Mariupol, which is part of the industrial region in eastern Ukraine known as the Donbas, has been a key objective for Russia since the start of the Feb. 24 invasion. (AP Photo/Alexei Alexandrov, File)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Hundreds of Ukrainian fighters left the vast steel plant in Mariupol where they mounted a dogged last stand and turned themselves over to Russian hands.

That signals the beginning of the end of a siege that became a symbol of Ukraine’s resistance to Moscow’s invasion.

Russia on Tuesday called the operation a mass surrender.

The Ukrainians avoided using that word but said the garrison had completed its mission, and that they were working to pull out the fighters that remain.