Russian troops have reportedly stormed the Mariupol steel plant where hundreds of civilians and wounded Ukrainians were sheltering, according to the forces defending the metal works.
The Azovstal Iron and Steel Works was the last stronghold of Ukrainian forces in the southern port city.
It had been under siege from Russian forces for weeks, and stood even as the rest of the city fell to Putin's troops.
Videos filmed from the underground warren beneath the plant revealed a desperate situation with hundreds of injured including some wounds turning gangrenous.
Hundreds of civilians and wounded were said to be trapped down there as well as the troops fighting Russian occupation.
Want all the latest news and analysis from Ukraine? Sign up to our World News Bulletin here
On top of that, there were growing fears of starvation as they began to run low on supplies.
Despite repeated efforts to secure safe evacuation routes for those trapped inside, they were largely unsuccessful.
However, in the last few days, the first civilians were able to be evacuated from the plant.
On Tuesday, the UN, in corodination with The International Committee of the Red Cross, confirmed 101 people were successfully evacuated from the Azovstal steel plant.
A U.N. humanitarian official said most of the evacuees were in Zaporizhzhia, where they are receiving humanitarian assistance.
"Thanks to the operation, 101 women, men, children, and older persons could finally leave the bunkers below the Azovstal steelworks and see the daylight after two months," Osnat Lubrani, U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, said in a statement sent to journalists.
The International Committee of the Red Cross, which was also involved in the safe passage operation, released a parallel statement
Russia claimed it was 25 people, including children, but Ukraine disputed the number, saying it was only 20.
The steelworks became a flashpoint of the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, and in late April, during a televised meeting, Putin ordered it blockaded “so that not even a fly can escape.”
Talking to defence minster Sergei Shoigu, Putin said there was “no need to climb into these catacombs and crawl underground through these industrial facilities”.
He called for his forces to “block off this industrial area so that not even a fly can escape”.
He even then added it would be “impractical” to storm the huge industrial area - which is four square miles in size.
Footage filmed inside the steelworks revealed the reality of those trapped there.
Unidentified men were covered in stained bandages whilst others had open wounds or amputated limbs.
The videos were shared by two Ukrainian women who said their husbands were among the fighters holding fast there.
They said there was a skeleton medical staff who were treating at least 600 wounded people and said that some of the wounds were rotting with gangrene.
In the video the soldiers said they eat just once a day and share as little as a litre and a half of water among four people as supplies run low.
The video also revealed the warren of underground pathways beneath the facility where the Ukrainians are hiding.
The Mirror reported yesterday how National Guard commander Denys Shlega said several hundred civilians remain trapped alongside nearly 500 wounded soldiers and “numerous” dead bodies.
He added: “Several dozen small children are still in the bunkers underneath the plant.”
There are fears the troops may not be allowed to surrender and during a ceasefire, old women and mums with small children climbed over rubble at the plant before boarding buses to escape.
The civilians were driven to Ukrainian-controlled Zaporizhzhia, 140 miles north of Mariupol, and those who fled Russian-occupied areas say their vehicles were fired at.
