New Delhi, March 13
Russia has opened 14 mercenary recruitment centres in Syria and is also training mercenaries from Libya.

This was reported by the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

"Putin's Russia has opened 14 recruitment centres for mercenaries in Syria in the territories controlled by the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Damascus, Aleppo, Hama, Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor. After a short training, the mercenaries will be transported to Russia through the Khmeimim airbase by two Tu-134 aircraft which can carry up to 80 passengers and Tu-154 (up to 180 passengers) to the Chkalovsky airbase, Moscow region", UNIAN reported.

Intelligence notes that in recent days, Russia has already gathered thousands of Syrian mercenaries into the ranks of the occupying forces, in particular, these are members of the so-called "National Defense Militia" and units of the 5th Corps of the Syrian Armed Forces. It is assumed that the Syrians will use heavy artillery and sniper weapons against the Ukrainians.

The report says that information has been confirmed about the preparation by Russia of mercenaries from Libya to be involved in hostilities in Ukraine.

"Russia will pay foreign mercenaries a monthly salary of between $300 and $600," Ukrainian intelligence reports.

As UNIAN reported earlier, the Russian Federation overturned part of the "peacekeeping" contingent from Nagorno-Karabakh (Azerbaijan) to Ukraine.

Russian forces wipe out an entire Ukraine city'

New Delhi, March 13 (IANS) Russian forces have 'completely destroyed' the eastern Ukrainian town of Volnovakha following a days-long bombing campaign - but fighting continues for territory there to prevent a Russian encirclement as citizens refuse to accept Moscow's rule, Daily Mail reported.

Donetsk Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko confirmed the town had been destroyed late on Sunday, saying that Volnovakha "no longer exists" after Moscow's "war of annihilation" that has left the smouldering remains of the town "in the hands of Russian-backed separatists".

Images and videos posted on social media showed Russian forces, complete with the tell-tale Z markings on their vehicles, entering the burnt out town that now primarily consists of rubble.

Moscow's troops continue to use indiscriminate shelling to encircle key Ukrainian cities and are said to be bearing down on Kyiv for an "all-out assault" in the coming days, Daily Mail reported.

Satellite images taken on Saturday morning showed extensive damage to civilian infrastructure and residential buildings throughout the southern Ukrainian city of Mariupol, a private US company said.

Maxar Technologies said fires were seen in the western section of the Black Sea port city and dozens of high-rise apartment buildings had been severely damaged.

Russia drafting mercenaries from Syria, Libya in Ukraine hostilities