{O/C} Ukrainian troops have adamantly rejected a Russian demand that they surrender to Russian forces in exchange for safe passage out of Mariupol.
{SOT}
Artillery barrages have rendered Ukraine a hair's breadth from falling into Russian hands.
Even though the Russian offensive has floundered in other areas, fighting for the besieged port city of Mariupol have proven an insuperable task.
This as Russian forces are urging Ukrainians to capitulate in order for humanitarian corridors to leave the strategic port city.
Russia said it would wait until 5 a.m. this morning Moscow time for a written response from Kiev, yet didn't mention the actions it would take otherwise.
Anxiety was palpable on trains bringing Ukrainians in Mariupol to safety. Residents wept as they lamented the excruciating war is turning out to be a humanitarian crisis that has "stripped" Mariupol of its strategic port city status.
Ukrainian authorities estimate up to 10 percent of the city's 430,000 residents have fled the city.
As the war of attrition rages on came word that Russian forces have literally been on Ukrainians' doorsteps. Residents in this residential area near Kiev say Russian forces toting heavy machine guns not only struck the area with missiles, but also took residents hostage.
Leakage of ammonia gas was reported at the Sumykhimprom plant on the outskirts of the eastern Ukrainian city of Sumy.
Emergency officials have successfully contained the leak, which contaminated the area.
Overnight shelling near Kiev's centre has left at least 6 perished. The force of the explosion last night shattered windows in a high-rise close by.
Meantime, a defiant Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, warned of a third world war should diplomacy fail to achieve a halt to the crisis, citing Russia's attempt to "exterminate" Ukrainians and trample on their needs.
He also indicated he is willing to meet with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
The United Nations reported that ten million Ukrainian citizens have pulled up stakes due to the interminable crisis.
When push comes to shove, it's unity as even fragile Ukrainians are galvanised to form a united front against the Russian aggression to shield their sacred homeland.
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