Ukraine Says Russia Hit Mariupol Theater Hiding Residents, Moscow Denies Attack

A satellite image shows the Mariupol Drama Theater before the bombing, as the word “children” in Russian is written in large white letters on the sidewalk in front of and behind the building, in Mariupol, Ukraine, March 14, 2022. Image taken March 14, 2022 Satellite Image ?2022 Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION TO EDITORS – THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. OBLIGATORY CREDIT. NO RESALE. NO ARCHIVES. DO NOT COVER THE LOGO.

LVIV, Ukraine, March 16 – Russian forces dropped a powerful bomb on a theater in the besieged Ukrainian port city of Mariupol, where hundreds of civilians were hiding on Wednesday, Ukraine’s foreign ministry said.

The ministry said many people were trapped in the theater and accused Russia of committing a war crime. According to him, the number of victims is still unknown. Reuters was unable to independently verify the information.

Russia denies that it has targeted civilians. In Moscow, the Defense Ministry said its forces did not strike the building, but instead blamed the Azov Battalion, a far-right Ukrainian militia, for the blast, RIA reported.

He did not provide evidence to support this assertion. Russia has previously accused the battalion of preventing civilians from leaving the heavily bombed city.

Maxar Technologies, a private US company, released satellite imagery it said was taken on March 14 and showed the word “children” written in large Russian on the ground near the red-roofed Mariupol Drama Theatre.

Maxar (MAXR.N) stated that he will be distributing new images of the theater as soon as they become available.

Reporting by Natalia Zinets, David Junggren and Rami Ayub; Edited by Jonathan Outis and Rosalba O’Brien

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