(Kyiv) More than 130 people have been rescued from a Mariupol theater building bombed by the Russian army, but “hundreds” of others remain under the rubble, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday.
Posted at 10:40 a.m.
“More than 130 people were able to be saved. But hundreds of residents of Mariupol are still under the rubble,” he said in a video while promising the continuation of relief operations “despite the shelling” which continues in this large city in the south-east of the country. country.
The Ukrainian authorities on Wednesday accused the Russian air force of having “knowingly” bombed a theater in Mariupol where hundreds of inhabitants were refugees, which Russia denied.
The town hall of Mariupol reported that the situation was “critical” in the city with “uninterrupted” Russian bombardments and “colossal” destruction. According to initial estimates, around 80% of the city’s housing stock was destroyed.
PHOTO ALEXANDER ERMOCHENKO, REUTERS
A line of cars wanting to leave Mariupol, March 17
The Russian army announced on Friday that it would now fight in the city center of this besieged strategic port.
For his part, Mr. Zelensky castigated the slowness of Western arms deliveries to Ukraine when he has been demanding for weeks that Kyiv be supplied with combat planes.
“We will again remind some Western leaders that it will be a moral defeat for them, it will destroy their prestige if Ukraine does not receive advanced weapons,” he said.
Demanding a permanent tightening of sanctions against Russia “until there is peace in Ukraine”, Mr. Zelensky further called for the closure of European ports for Russian ships and attacked Western groups n not leaving Russia after the start of its invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
“It is necessary for all Western companies to leave the Russian market,” he said, targeting Nestlé and Auchan.