The families of the Azovstal defenders appealed to international leaders, particularly the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for help in evacuating Ukrainian soldiers defending the Azovstal combine in Mariupol.

“You have the opportunity to go down in history as a hero who brought peace”, - the father of one of the soldiers said during a press conference in Kyiv.

“My husband is now in Azovstal. I appeal to everyone, please save our soldiers. We call on everyone: do something, we don’t have time”, - said the wife of one of the soldiers fighting in Mariupol facilities.

She also addressed the Turkish president: “I ask you to help save the lives of our soldiers in Mariupol. You have great authority among world leaders”.

According to the father of one of the soldiers, there is not a war going on at the compound, but a massacre: “This is a violation of all conventions, it is a simple killing of people. We want the evacuation of people located in Azovstal, the wounded and the bodies (of the dead) to neutral territory”.

As he stressed, the evacuation of soldiers should be undertaken by a person who has the political authority to carry it out smoothly.

“From a political, geopolitical point of view, such a country could be Turkey, and such a hero could be its president. Please like a man to a man, as a father to a father, please help take my son and his companions out of there. You already have experience in similar operations in the Middle East. We ask you to send a civilian unarmed ship to take our people out of there”, - the father stressed.

The wife of one of the soldiers said she last had contact with her husband on May 7: “He said that it is possible that we will not see each other again, the siege of Azovstal is narrowing. For us this is the end”