Azov-soldaternas fruar: Rädda våra män också

The Azov Special Operations Detachment (Ukrainian: Окремий загін спеціального призначення «Азов», romanized: Okremyi zahin spetsialnoho pryznachennia "Azov"), also known as the Azov Regiment (Ukrainian: Полк Азов, romanized: Polk Azov) or Azov Battalion (Ukrainian: батальйон «Азов», romanized: Bataliyon "Azov") until September 2014, is a neo-Nazi unit of the National Guard of Ukraine based in Mariupol in the coastal region of the Sea of Azov, from where it derives its name. Azov formed as a volunteer paramilitary militia in May 2014, and has since been fighting Russian forces in the Donbas War. It first saw combat recapturing Mariupol from Russian forces and pro-Russian separatists in June 2014. It initially operated as a volunteer police company, until it was formally incorporated into the National Guard on 11 November 2014. In the wake of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the battalion gained renewed attention for its use by Russia in justifying the invasion and during the Siege of Mariupol for its role in the defense of the city.The battalion drew controversy over allegations of torture and war crimes, as well as association with neo-Nazi ideology. Azov uses controversial symbols, including the Wolfsangel insignia used by divisions of the Waffen-SS and Wehrmacht during World War II.In March 2015, Andriy Diachenko, a spokesman for the Azov Brigade, told USA Today that 10% to 20% of the group's members are Nazis. A provision in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018, passed by the United States Congress, blocked military aid to Azov due to its white supremacist ideology; in 2015, a similar ban had been overturned by Congress. Members of the battalion came from 22 countries and are of various backgrounds. In 2017, the size of the regiment was estimated at more than 2,500 members, but was estimated to be 900 members in 2022.