‘People are coming out alive’: Survivors emerge from bombed Mariupol theatre, says local MP
By Latika Bourke
March 17, 2022 —
Authorities in Mariupol say people are coming out alive after successfully hiding in a bomb shelter at the theatre where hundreds of people, including children, were sheltering, prompting hopes of a miracle in the besieged Ukrainian city.
Sergiy Taruta, the local MP, announced the news on Facebook, which was translated by an official adviser to the Ukrainian government on Telegram.
Photo released by Donetsk Regional Civil-Military Administration Council shows the Mariupol Drama Theatre damaged after shelling.
CREDIT:AP
“After a terrible and scary night of uncertainty on the morning of the 22nd day of the war, finally good news from Mariupol!” Taruta wrote.
“The bomb shelter withstood! The blockages began to be dismantled and people are coming out alive!”
The number of casualties and survivors is still unknown as the amount of rubble and debris created by the attack had made any recovery impossible. A search effort is now under way.
Private satellite firm Maxar released an image showing the word “children” written in Russian outside the theatre which was the target of a Russian attack on Wednesday.
Ukraine has said the bombing of the civilian target is yet another war crime committed by the Russians.
On Thursday, US President Joe Biden for the first time said Russia’s Vladimir Putin was a “war criminal.”
The Mariupol Drama Theatre in Mariupol, Ukraine, on Monday, with the word “children” painted on the ground at the front and back of the building.
“After a terrible and scary night of uncertainty on the morning of the 22nd day of the war, finally good news from Mariupol!” Taruta wrote.
“The bomb shelter withstood! The blockages began to be dismantled and people are coming out alive!”
The number of casualties and survivors is still unknown as the amount of rubble and debris created by the attack had made any recovery impossible. A search effort is now under way.
Private satellite firm Maxar released an image showing the word “children” written in Russian outside the theatre which was the target of a Russian attack on Wednesday.
Ukraine has said the bombing of the civilian target is yet another war crime committed by the Russians.
On Thursday, US President Joe Biden for the first time said Russia’s Vladimir Putin was a “war criminal.”
The Mariupol Drama Theatre in Mariupol, Ukraine, on Monday, with the word “children” painted on the ground at the front and back of the building.
CREDIT:MAXAR TECHNOLOGIES/AP
In his latest video update, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the death toll was still unknown.
“In Mariupol, besieged Mariupol, Russian aircraft purposefully dropped a huge bomb on the Drama Theatre in the city centre,” he said.
“Hundreds of people were hiding from the shelling there, the building was destroyed.
“Our hearts are broken by what Russia is doing to our people, to our Mariupol, to the Donetsk region,” he said.
Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that it was a “lie” that Russia had bombed the theatre.
“Russia’s armed forces don’t bomb towns and cities,” she told in a briefing.
Repeated attempts to create humanitarian green corridors to allow citizens to escape have been frustrated by the Russians.
This occurred again this week, according to Zelensky, when citizens trapped in Mariupol were trying to escape but shelled upon by the Russians.
He said it was only by a “miracle” that no-one was hurt. He said that 6000 citizens managed to flee including 2000 children.
In his latest video update, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the death toll was still unknown.
“In Mariupol, besieged Mariupol, Russian aircraft purposefully dropped a huge bomb on the Drama Theatre in the city centre,” he said.
“Hundreds of people were hiding from the shelling there, the building was destroyed.
“Our hearts are broken by what Russia is doing to our people, to our Mariupol, to the Donetsk region,” he said.
Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that it was a “lie” that Russia had bombed the theatre.
“Russia’s armed forces don’t bomb towns and cities,” she told in a briefing.
Repeated attempts to create humanitarian green corridors to allow citizens to escape have been frustrated by the Russians.
This occurred again this week, according to Zelensky, when citizens trapped in Mariupol were trying to escape but shelled upon by the Russians.
He said it was only by a “miracle” that no-one was hurt. He said that 6000 citizens managed to flee including 2000 children.
First Thing: Zelenskiy likens Mariupol assault to Leningrad siege
Clea Skopeliti
THE GUARDIAN
MARCH 17,2022
Good morning.
The Ukrainian president has drawn parallels between Russia’s siege of the southern city of Mariupol and that of Leningrad during the second world war, as Russian forces continued to shell Kyiv.
“Citizens of Russia, how is your blockade of Mariupol different from the blockade of Leningrad during world war two?” Volodymyr Zelenskiy said late on Wednesday, referring to the German blockade of the city now called St Petersburg, which resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths. “We will not forget anyone whose lives were taken by the occupiers.”
Good morning.
The Ukrainian president has drawn parallels between Russia’s siege of the southern city of Mariupol and that of Leningrad during the second world war, as Russian forces continued to shell Kyiv.
“Citizens of Russia, how is your blockade of Mariupol different from the blockade of Leningrad during world war two?” Volodymyr Zelenskiy said late on Wednesday, referring to the German blockade of the city now called St Petersburg, which resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths. “We will not forget anyone whose lives were taken by the occupiers.”
Zelenskiy’s remarks came after Joe Biden significantly toughened his rhetoric against Vladimir Putin, calling the Russian president a “war criminal”. The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said Biden’s comments were “unacceptable and unforgivable”.
How many have been killed in Mariupol? Local officials estimated that more than 2,500 people had been killed but the shelling meant the dead could not be counted. More than 400,000 were either without access to running water, food and medical supplies or struggling with a dwindling amount.
Russia launched an airstrike on a theatre in Mariupol where hundreds of displaced people were believed to have been sheltering. Zelenskiy said it was unclear how many had died or been injured.
What is the US doing? It will send an extra $800m in security assistance to Ukraine, including 800 anti-aircraft systems, 9,000 anti-armour systems, 20m rounds of ammunition and drones.
Mariupol: Russia accused of bombing theatre and swimming pool sheltering civilians
Ukraine authorities say hundreds of people were hiding in theatre and that convoy of cars leaving besieged city was also shelled
Ukraine authorities say hundreds of people were hiding in theatre and that convoy of cars leaving besieged city was also shelled
00:45Mariupol theatre and swimming pool where civilians sheltered lie in ruins – video
Lorenzo Tondo in Lviv and Isobel Koshiw in Kyiv
Thu 17 Mar 2022
Ukrainian officials have accused Russian forces of further atrocities in the besieged city of Mariupol, including an airstrike on a theatre where hundreds of displaced people were believed to have been sheltering and a strike on a swimming pool where pregnant women and young children had gathered. Russian forces were also accused of shelling of a convoy of cars of civilians fleeing the city.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said late on Wednesday that the strike on the theatre was deliberate and that the death toll was still unknown, adding: “Our hearts are broken by what Russia is doing to our people”.
He also compared the siege of the city to that of Leningrad in the second world war.
Ukrainian officials have accused Russian forces of further atrocities in the besieged city of Mariupol, including an airstrike on a theatre where hundreds of displaced people were believed to have been sheltering and a strike on a swimming pool where pregnant women and young children had gathered. Russian forces were also accused of shelling of a convoy of cars of civilians fleeing the city.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said late on Wednesday that the strike on the theatre was deliberate and that the death toll was still unknown, adding: “Our hearts are broken by what Russia is doing to our people”.
He also compared the siege of the city to that of Leningrad in the second world war.
01:18Mariupol attack no different from siege of Leningrad, Zelenskiy says – video
Mariupol has been facing a humanitarian catastrophe for days, and Russia continued to rain down fire on it and other Ukrainian cities on Wednesday, even as the two sides projected optimism over efforts at peace talks to negotiate an end to the fighting.
There was no immediate confirmation of numbers of deaths or injuries in what the Mariupol city council said was a “bomb on a building where hundreds of peaceful Mariupol residents were hiding.” “We don’t know if there are any survivors,” one witness said. “The bomb shelter is also covered with debris … there are both adults and children there.”
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| BEFORE AND AFTER |
About 1,000 civilians were allegedly hiding inside the theatre, which was designated as a shelter for the displaced, including children and elderly people.Before and after the bombing of the Drama Theatre in Mariupol
Later Pavlo Kyrylenko, the head of Donetsk regional administration, claimed Russians had also targeted the Neptune swimming pool. “Now there are pregnant women and women with children under the rubble there,” he said in a post on Telegram. “It is impossible to establish the number of casualties from these strikes.”
A witness who posted a video of the aftermath of the attack said the pool had been destroyed and efforts were under way to rescue one pregnant woman trapped in the rubble.
As Joe Biden called Vladimir Putin a “war criminal”, local authorities in Mariupol posted an image of the city’s theatre showing it had sustained heavy damage in the attack. Russian forces had “purposefully and cynically destroyed the Drama Theater in the heart of Mariupol”, it said. Moscow denies targeting civilians and Russia’s defence ministry said its forces had not struck the building, RIA news agency said.
A satellite photograph from 14 March and released on Wednesday by Maxar Technologies showed the word “children” in large Russian script painted on the ground outside the red-roofed theatre building.
A satellite photograph from 14 March and released on Wednesday by Maxar Technologies showed the word “children” in large Russian script painted on the ground outside the red-roofed theatre building.
A satellite image shows Mariupol Drama Theatre before the bombing. The word ‘children’ is written in Russian in large white letters on the pavement in front of and behind the building. Photograph: Maxar Technologies/Reuters
Ukraine’s ministry of defence has described Mariupol as the worst front of the war. Mass graves have been dug on the outskirts of the city and the bodies of men, women and children have been left on the streets. More than 400,000 of its inhabitants are either without or with dwindling access to running water, food and medical supplies.
Local officials have said more than 2,500 have been killed. But the reality is that, because of the shelling, the dead cannot be counted.
Ukrainian officials also accused Russian forces of shelling a convoy of cars of civilians fleeing the city, wounding at least five people, including a child.
Local officials shared photos and videos of the aftermath of the alleged attack. “Heavy artillery of the enemy forces fired on a convoy of civilians moving along the highway towards Zaporizhzhia,” the governor of the region, Oleksandr Starukh, said in an online post.
The Ukrainian military also reported the strike in a separate statement. Work was under way to confirm the number of casualties, it said. Authorities also shared a photo of a child it said had been wounded in the attack.
More than 400 people, whom Ukrainian authorities have compared to hostages, remain trapped in a Mariupol hospital seized by Russian forces.
“It is impossible to get out of the hospital,” one employee said on the Telegram social media platform. “They shoot hard, we sit in the basement. Cars have not been able to drive to the hospital for two days. High-rise buildings are burning around … Russians rushed 400 people from neighbouring houses to our hospital. We can’t leave.”
Ukraine’s ministry of defence has described Mariupol as the worst front of the war. Mass graves have been dug on the outskirts of the city and the bodies of men, women and children have been left on the streets. More than 400,000 of its inhabitants are either without or with dwindling access to running water, food and medical supplies.
Local officials have said more than 2,500 have been killed. But the reality is that, because of the shelling, the dead cannot be counted.
Ukrainian officials also accused Russian forces of shelling a convoy of cars of civilians fleeing the city, wounding at least five people, including a child.
Local officials shared photos and videos of the aftermath of the alleged attack. “Heavy artillery of the enemy forces fired on a convoy of civilians moving along the highway towards Zaporizhzhia,” the governor of the region, Oleksandr Starukh, said in an online post.
The Ukrainian military also reported the strike in a separate statement. Work was under way to confirm the number of casualties, it said. Authorities also shared a photo of a child it said had been wounded in the attack.
More than 400 people, whom Ukrainian authorities have compared to hostages, remain trapped in a Mariupol hospital seized by Russian forces.
“It is impossible to get out of the hospital,” one employee said on the Telegram social media platform. “They shoot hard, we sit in the basement. Cars have not been able to drive to the hospital for two days. High-rise buildings are burning around … Russians rushed 400 people from neighbouring houses to our hospital. We can’t leave.”
Russian tanks move down a street on the outskirts of Mariupol. Photograph: Evgeniy Maloletka/AP
Officials have told families to leave their dead outside in the streets because holding funerals is too dangerous.
Witnesses tell of a city in chaos, under constant bombardment, which is becoming more and more difficult to escape. Thousands of people are trying to reach the city of Zaporizhzhia, where refugees are taking shelter, but according to the Ukrainian authorities, the Russians are trying to prevent citizens from fleeing.
The regional governor, Alexander Starukh, wrote on Telegram that “Russian rockets have landed in the area of the Zaporozhye-2 railway station”.
The right bank of Mariupol, which is divided by a river, is at the centre of a vicious battle between Ukrainian and Russian forces.
Officials have told families to leave their dead outside in the streets because holding funerals is too dangerous.
Witnesses tell of a city in chaos, under constant bombardment, which is becoming more and more difficult to escape. Thousands of people are trying to reach the city of Zaporizhzhia, where refugees are taking shelter, but according to the Ukrainian authorities, the Russians are trying to prevent citizens from fleeing.
The regional governor, Alexander Starukh, wrote on Telegram that “Russian rockets have landed in the area of the Zaporozhye-2 railway station”.
The right bank of Mariupol, which is divided by a river, is at the centre of a vicious battle between Ukrainian and Russian forces.
The left bank is under Russian occupation and almost completely cut off. One of the two bridges from the left bank has been destroyed and those in contact with relatives inside the city say the second bridge is the scene of intense fighting.
A senior Ukrainian official said it was an “open question” whether a “humanitarian corridor” would be opened on Wednesday to evacuate more civilians. So far, about 20,000 people have managed to leave the encircled port city, but only if they have access to cars.
According to one woman whose parents are trapped in the town, 2,000 vehicles left on Tuesday and about 500 on Wednesday. She has not heard from her parents for four days. The Ukrainian authorities have told those with transport to leave Mariupol, but most of the trapped citizens either do not have cars or their cars have been destroyed by the shelling, three people with relatives inside the city told the Guardian.
A number of witnesses trapped in the city say the Russians are bombing radio and telecommunications towers, meaning that contacting people there has become increasingly difficult. Relatives of those living in the city desperately searching every day for news about their loved ones have been unable to find a phone signal.
“From what I’ve heard from people I’ve managed to speak to, they shot at telecommunications masts, and that’s why there has been no signal, not because the electricity was cut off,” said Iryna Bakazheriva, whose family members are stuck on the right bank of Mariupol.
She was contacted by a neighbour who left the basement and climbed to the eighth floor of his building, where a signal was available. “They are waiting for official information about an evacuation, but there is none,” said Bakazheriva.
A senior Ukrainian official said it was an “open question” whether a “humanitarian corridor” would be opened on Wednesday to evacuate more civilians. So far, about 20,000 people have managed to leave the encircled port city, but only if they have access to cars.
According to one woman whose parents are trapped in the town, 2,000 vehicles left on Tuesday and about 500 on Wednesday. She has not heard from her parents for four days. The Ukrainian authorities have told those with transport to leave Mariupol, but most of the trapped citizens either do not have cars or their cars have been destroyed by the shelling, three people with relatives inside the city told the Guardian.
A number of witnesses trapped in the city say the Russians are bombing radio and telecommunications towers, meaning that contacting people there has become increasingly difficult. Relatives of those living in the city desperately searching every day for news about their loved ones have been unable to find a phone signal.
“From what I’ve heard from people I’ve managed to speak to, they shot at telecommunications masts, and that’s why there has been no signal, not because the electricity was cut off,” said Iryna Bakazheriva, whose family members are stuck on the right bank of Mariupol.
She was contacted by a neighbour who left the basement and climbed to the eighth floor of his building, where a signal was available. “They are waiting for official information about an evacuation, but there is none,” said Bakazheriva.
People queue to receive food in an improvised bomb shelter in Mariupol.
Photograph: Evgeniy Maloletka/AP
Hundreds of people left homeless have gathered in a large public building and have been crammed for days in the basement. “Some have developed sepsis from shrapnel in the body,” Anastasiya Ponomareva, a 39-year-old teacher who fled the city, at the start of the war, but was still in contact with friends there, told the BBC. “Things are very serious.”
“People who managed to hide in underground shelters basically live there permanently,” she said. “They practically cannot leave at all.”
Maryna Hammershmidt, whose elderly parents, sister, nieces and nephews are on the left bank, said she had heard no news from them for two weeks. On Tuesday, Hammershmidt’s sister put a sim card into an old analogue mobile phone and managed to call her.
Hammershmidt’s sister said she and the rest of her family were living in a bomb shelter with 300 other people on the left bank. They have no access to transport. Her sister said a group had tried to leave, but the car in front of them was hit by a missile, so they returned.
01:25 Children's and maternity hospital hit by Russian bombs, say Ukraine authorities – video
Hammershmidt has written to all the officials she can think of in Poland and Ukraine to increase pressure to evacuate those trapped inside the city. “They’ve abandoned a city of half a million people,” she said. “My mother is 78 and my father is 80, they are sitting in a basement. My sister is with a baby who is just one month old.”
“The left bank is completely cut off, there’s about 80,000 people
living there,” she continued. “It’s a living hell. When are they going to evacuate people?”
In a Telegram chat where about 100,000 citizens of Mariupol are collecting testimonies from relatives and friends in the city, users have reported the “the police academy is completely occupied by the Russians”.
Taking Mariupol, which is 34 miles from Russia’s border, would mark a strategic breakthrough for Vladimir Putin.
The city lies between territory held by Russian-backed separatists in the Donbas region and the Crimean peninsula, which was annexed by Moscow in 2014 and from where it has launched its assault on key southern towns in Ukraine.
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