Russia says that nearly 1,000 Ukrainian fighters holed up in the Azovstal steel plant -- their last stronghold in the besieged southern Ukrainian port city of Mariupol -- have given themselves up.
Defense Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov said on May 18 that 694 Ukrainian fighters at Azovstal had "surrendered" over the past 24 hours, including 29 wounded soldiers.
Konashenkov said that 265 Ukrainian troops, including 51 wounded, had laid down their arms during the previous 24 hours.
That brings the total number of Ukrainian troops who have left the plant this week to 959. All of them were reportedly transferred to territory in eastern Ukraine that is controlled by Kremlin-backed separatists.
Ukrainian authorities have not confirmed the numbers.
On May 17, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said negotiations for the fighters' release were ongoing, as were plans to extract those who are still inside the sprawling steel plant.
She added that Kyiv would not disclose how many fighters remained inside until all were safe.
Mariupol has been the site of some of the heaviest fighting since Russia launched its war against Ukraine on February 24.
Kyiv has said it hopes to exchange the surrendered Ukrainian fighters for Russian prisoners of war. Russia has yet to confirm whether the soldiers would be part of a prisoner swap, but some lawmakers in Moscow have come out strongly against such a move.
Reports have estimated that as many as 2,000 Ukrainian fighters had been holed up in Azovstal's sprawling maze of tunnels and bunkers.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that "the most influential international mediators are involved" in the current negotiations.