Kyiv has ordered the last Ukrainian forces trapped in Mariupol’s besieged Azovstal steelworks to cease fighting, according to a commander of a battalion heading the trapped units.

“The higher military command has given the order to save the lives of the soldiers of our garrison and to stop defending the city,” Denys Prokopenko stated in a Telegram video.

He stated that removing slain combatants from the factory was a “ongoing process.”

The troops have become a symbol of Ukraine’s staunch resistance to Russia’s invasion after being trapped in the massive steelworks for weeks.

Since Monday, 1,908 Ukrainian troops besieged in the facility have surrendered, according to Moscow.

The objective now, according to Prokopenko, is to move the fallen from the plant.

“We have always insisted on three of the most important conditions for us: civilians, wounded and the dead,” he stated.

A UN-led operation evacuated civilians from the plant’s subterranean tunnels, and Prokopenko claimed injured combatants were helped.

Only the “killed heroes” remain, he claims.

“I now hope that soon, the families and all of Ukraine will be able to bury their fighters with honour,” he added.

Ukraine is hoping to swap the Azovstal troops in Moscow for Russian detainees.

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