Ukraine fights to hold off Russian advances in south, east
KHARKIV: Ukrainian forces fought to hold off Russian attempts to advance in the south and east, where the Kremlin is seeking to capture the country’s industrial Donbas region, and a senior US defense official said Moscow’s offensive is going much slower than planned. While artillery fire, sirens and explosions were heard Friday in some cities, the United Nations sought to broker an evacuation of civilians from the increasingly hellish ruins of Mariupol, where the mayor said the situation inside the steel plant that has become the southern port city’s last stronghold is dire. Citizens are “begging to get saved,” Mayor Vadym Boichenko said. “There, it’s not a matter of days. It’s a matter of hours.” In other developments: — A former US Marine was killed while fighting alongside Ukrainian forces, his family said in what would be the war’s first known death of an American in combat. The US has not confirmed the report. — Ukrainian forces are cracking down on people accused of helping ...