Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky demanded the release of Melitopol’s mayor after his alleged kidnap by Russian troops, which sparked local protests.
Ukrainian President claimed that the captured city was being ‘tried to bring it to its knees’. He demanded Ivan Fedorov’s immediate release as the mayor of the coastal city.
Zelensky also urged Russian forces not to ignore the protests of Melitopol residents, who demanded that Ivan Fedorov is freed.
Zelensky, at a press conference said that: “The demand for release is very simple. [Fedorov]”Free from Captivity immediately”
Zelensky and Ukrainian officials claimed that Ivan Fedorov was kidnapped by 10 Russian soldiers from Kiev’s crisis center while wearing a bag on his head.
Telegram’s deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential office posted CCTV footage that appears to show men leading Mr Fedorov across a street and out of the building.
Zelensky, who spoke earlier Saturday with the leaders of Germany and France, described the alleged detention of Fedorov as an attempt ‘to bring the city to its knees’.
A shocking video purports that Ivan Fedorov, Melitopol’s mayor, was kidnapped and killed by Russian soldiers after he “refused co-operation with the enemy”.
![At a press conference, Zelensky said: 'The demand is simple - to release [Fedorov] from captivity immediately'.](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/03/12/19/55273207-10605321-At_a_press_conference_Zelensky_said_The_demand_is_simple_to_rele-a-2_1647112070437.jpg)
Zelensky, at a press conference said that: “The demand for release is very simple. [Fedorov]”No need to be held captive immediately.”
He also said Ukraine expects ‘the leaders of the world to show how they can influence the liberation (of) a man who personifies Ukrainians who do not give up’.
Following the alleged kidnapping, Ukrainian officials said 2,000 people took to the streets of Melitopol to protest.
Officials have shared footage of crowds of rebel residents with Ukrainian flags as the gathered in front an occupied building.
The parliament of Ukraine claimed that Mr Fedorov had been kidnapped and held captive by 10 armed men. They placed a plastic bag above his head. Russia did not comment on Mr Fedorov’s fate.
Ukrainian media have shared this clip many times. The footage is believed to be shot in Melitopol’s Victory Square.
Friday’s remarks by President Zelensky, who described the alleged abduction of Mr Fedorov as a crime against democracy and said that acts of Russian invaders will be considered terrorism.
“The arrest of Melitopol’s mayor is a crime not just against one person but against an entire community and against Ukraine. It’s a crime against democracy. He stated that Russian intruders would be considered terrorist acts by Islamic State terrorists.
Ukrainian officials claim that Melitopol’s mayor, Melitopol, was abducted after he “refused co-operation with the enemy”.
Zelensky Due to the absence of support in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin’s forces were accused by his troops of moving to a new level of terror.
Telegram video of CCTV footage of Mr Fedorov being led out of a building by a group appears to have been posted by the deputy head for Ukraine’s presidency office.
Friday’s alleged abduction by Mr Fedorov (pictured), was described by President Zelensky as a crime against democracy. He also stated that the actions of Russian invaders will be considered terrorism.
Officials showed footage of protestors gathering at an occupied administrative building in order to denounce the kidnapping of Fedorov.
“This is clearly a sign that the invaders are weak… He said that they have now moved on to another stage of terror, in which the invaders are trying to kill representatives of legitimized local Ukrainian authorities.
Zelensky thanked Mr Fedorov for his bravery in defending Ukraine. He said that the resistance by Ukrainians will not change if ‘pressure is placed on mayors or kidnapping them’.
On its website, the Luhansk People’s Republic’s prosecutor’s bureau stated that there were criminal charges against Fedorov.
According to the office, he was charged with ‘terrorist activity’ as well as financing Right Sector’s nationalist militia Right Sector in order to commit terrorist acts against Donbass civilians.
According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the incident was a war crime.
On February 26, Russian forces captured Melitopol. It has 150,000 inhabitants.
Zelensky, who was also in Ukraine, accused Russia that it refused to permit evacuees from Mariupol to flee the area. It has been without food, water or electricity since then. Zelensky defiantly claimed vital supplies would arrive there tomorrow even though it is being surrounded with Russian troops.
According to the Kremlin-owned Tass news media agency, all the bridges leading into Moscow were demolished and the roads with mines had been built.
Russian troops refuse to allow our help into the city, and they continue to torture our citizens… Tomorrow [Saturday]We will again try, send water, food and medicine again’ Zelensky stated.
Meanwhile, in Ukraine the violence in Mariupol grew even more last night when the death toll surpassed 1,500. Image: Aftershocks of Russian artillery bombardment on Mariupol’s residential areas where a rocket struck a home
A blast is observed in an apartment after the Russian-led tank fires in Mariupol (Ukraine) today
People have taken to the streets in horrible scenes never seen since World War II. They have started fighting for their food. More than 1500 bodies were buried in Mariupol mass graves.
Dmytro Kuneba, Ukraine’s foreign minister tweeted that ‘Besieged Mariupol has become the most catastrophic humanitarian disaster on Earth’. 1,582 people died in 12 days. Some were even buried with their bodies in mass graves. Putin attacks the unarmed and blocks humanitarian aid, unable to destroy the Ukrainian army. Russian war crimes must be stopped by planes!
According to President Zelensky, 7,144 people managed to escape four cities in Ukraine on Friday by using humanitarian corridors. This is a significantly lower figure than the number of those who fled in the previous two days.
This happened as Putin attacked areas in western and central Ukraine, some hundreds miles away from Kyiv. Large explosions lit up the night sky of Dnipro-Lutsk and residents were subject to Russian artillery fire for the first times.
Three strikes struck at once in Ivano-Frankivsk. They are believed to have targeted an airport on the city’s fringe. Yesterday’s indecisive shelling, which began at 4am UK Time yesterday, left Dnipro with tower blocks and set a factory on fire. One security guard was also killed.
The convoy covering 40 miles of troops, tanks, and artillery has moved to strategic positions, in anticipation of an attack on Kyiv.
Moscow is being feared to attempt another barbaric attack on cities like Mariupol. Russian troops are now located nine miles from Mariupol.
Satellite images revealed howitzer-wielding weapons and rocket launchers, prompting residents of Kyiv to take up arms. Russia was warned about the dangers of Moscow by Vitali Klitschko.
Military experts are puzzled at Russia’s inept tactics after yesterday’s drone footage showed one by one a column of tanks being taken by Ukrainian forces in an ambush.
According to analysts, Russian tank commanders let the Ukrainians ambush their units by driving right down the main road that leads into Kyiv. This would have led directly into a trap. According to multiple reports, the number of tanks that have been destroyed by President Vladimir Putin’s army is greater than all those in operation within Germany.
Putin may have to agree to a settlement sooner or later if Kyiv fails to take control.
He said yesterday that there were ‘positive differences’ in the negotiations between Russian officials and Ukrainian officials, as he received Alexander Lukashenko from Belarus to Moscow.
Some Russian units now lie just nine miles from Kyiv.
There are fears they will attempt to repeat the barbaric tactics used on other cities including Mariupol, which is surrounded – with those inside suffering starvation and dehydration. This week, Russian forces attacked a Maternity Hospital in the area.