Before and after photos of Mariupol show devastation of city where more than 1,500 killed
13.03.2022 - 14:31
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Horrifying satellite images show the devastation of Maripol city in eastern Ukraine after days of Russian air strikes.
At least 1,500 people are believed to have been killed in the besieged city since Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine began on February 24.
Images taken on Saturday, March 12, by private US satellite firm Maxar show fires burning in Mariupol and dozens of apartment buildings burnt to the ground.
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Put alongside images taken of the city from last year, the destruction caused by Russian bombing is clear.
Extensive damage has been caused to civilian infrastructure in and around the city, including residential homes, high-rise apartment buildings, grocery stores and shopping centres.
The United Nation's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said there are now reports of "looting and violent confrontations among civilians over what little basic supplies remain in the city", the Mirror reports.
"Medicines for life-threatening illnesses are quickly running out, hospitals are only partially functioning, and the food and water are in short supply," OCHA said in a statement.
Ukraine’s military said Russian forces have now captured Mariupol’s eastern outskirts.
On Friday, Mariupol City Council claimed at least 1,582 civilians had been killed in the city as a result of Russian shelling. It is not yet possible to independently verify these figures.
The city has endured some of the worst of Russia's attacks, and efforts to get supplies of food, water and medicine into the port city, and to get civilians out, have been thwarted by continued shelling.
Talks aimed at reaching a ceasefire again