Rachel Lang
Ukrainian commander Serhiy Volyna has called on Elon Musk to intervene on behalf of those trapped by Russian forces in the southern city of Mariupol.
The strategic port city has been battered by months of war since Vladimir Putin’s forces invaded on February 24.
Ukrainian forces have maintained a pocket of resistance within the Azovstal steelworks, with more than 1,000 troops still remaining inside.
Volyna, who is a commander of the 36th Separate Marine Brigade, created a Twitter account with the sole purpose of catching the eye of the Tesla billionaire.
"People say you come from another planet to teach people to believe in the impossible," Volyna tweeted at Musk.
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"Our planets are next to each other, as I live where it is nearly impossible to survive. Help us get out of Azovstal to a mediating country. If not you, then who?"
The Ukrainian commander then called on 'every person on the planet Earth' to help make sure the SpaceX founder sees his call for help.
Musk is yet to respond.
Volyna's call to arms comes after Kyiv revealed that many of those remaining in the sprawling Azovstal plant are injured, sheltering in the labyrinth of Soviet-era bunkers and tunnels from the Russian forces that are now in control of the city.
Women, children, and the elderly have already been evacuated from the besieged plant thanks to a humanitarian mission coordinated by the United Nations and the Red Cross, the AFP reports.
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This is the second time Volyna has issued a plea for help.
In a video, released on his social media accounts in April, he called on the world to send help for those trapped in the besieged city.
"We appeal and plead to all world leaders to help us. We ask them to use the procedure of extraction and take us to the territory of a third-party state," he said.
According to Mariupol mayor Vadym Boychenko, more than 10,000 civilians have died during the Russian siege of the port city.
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Boychenko told AP that the death toll could rise to more than 20,000 as weeks of attacks have left the bodies of Mariupol’s people 'carpeted through the streets'.
In April, Boychenko accused Russian forces of blocking humanitarian convoys from accessing Mariupol in order to conceal the true carnage from the rest of the world.
If you would like to donate to the Red Cross Emergency Appeal, which will help provide food, medicines and basic medical supplies, shelter and water to those in Ukraine, click here for more information.