The commander of the last Ukrainian forces in Mariupol begged international leaders on Wednesday for help, saying: “We are probably facing our last days, if not hours.”

The Kremlin had demanded that the Ukrainian military in Mariupol surrender by 2 p.m. local time on Wednesday, and capturing the crucial strategic southeastern port city would be a big success.

According to the Washington Post, Ukraine’s final holding in Mariupol, the 36th Separate Marine Brigade, has defied earlier orders to surrender and has held out despite being heavily outmanned.

The brigade’s commander, Major Serhiy Volyna, told WashPost on Tuesday that his troops will “conduct combat operations and complete our military tasks as long as we receive them… We will not lay down our weapons.”

“The enemy is outnumbering us 10 to one,” Volyna said in a video Wednesday morning.

“We appeal and plead to all world leaders to help us,” Volyna continued. “We ask them to use the procedure of extraction and take us to the territory of a third-party state.”

In the video, Volyna claims that civilians are taking refuge in the Azovstal steel mill, which his troops are guarding, and that Russian forces have an edge “in the air, in artillery, in their forces on land, in equipment, and in tanks.”

He told WashPost that “at least 500 people” were injured in the facility, including civilians.

“It’s in the basement where people just rot. There is no medication,” Volyna said.

Volyna pleaded with President Biden to help the soldiers and civilians who had “fallen into this trap” find safe passage.

“We very much hope that President Biden will hear us and help resolve our situation,” Volyna added. “We believe that this is one of the few people who can really influence and solve this situation in a short time.”

Volyna claimed his forces will fight until the end, but we have very little time left in a separate interview with CNN on Tuesday.

He refused to say how many Ukrainian forces are still holding out in the city.

On Tuesday, Russia’s government rejected UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ call for a truce in Ukraine from this Thursday until Orthodox Easter Sunday to allow civilians to flee the country.

Over 1,300 people were killed in the first ten days of Russian soldiers’ siege of Mariupol, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described as “destroying.”

According to experts, Russian soldiers are expected to take Mariupol soon.

Image Credit: Getty

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