Sounds of explosions rang out through Russian-occupied Mariupol on Tuesday night, according to the Mariupol mayor’s office.
Petro Andryushchenko, whose an adviser to the mayor’s office, said there were at least seven explosions Tuesday evening during an air raid. However, the Ukrainian officials were “smiling and waiting for good news.”
Andryushchenko wrote on his Telegram channel Tuesday evening that Russia claims reports of work on its anti-aircraft defense system in the region but that Russian propaganda networks also state that Russia shot down all drones attacking the Mariupol area.
“Loud sounds of cannonade throughout the city. At least seven loud explosions. Left Bank. An open approach between the village of Vynogradne and the village of Pionerske,” Andryushchenko wrote.
“They report on the active work of the occupiers’ anti-aircraft defense. Unofficial propaganda outlets, of course, report the standard “UAV attack” and “all targets down.” Wishful thinking. We are smiling and waiting for good news.”
Mariupol was one of the first big hotspots of the war after Russia attacked Ukraine on February 24, 2022. About 11 weeks later, Mariupol Mayor Vadym Boychenko said the death toll among its civilians had already doubled the amount caused by German Nazis over a two-year stretch during World War II. Boychenko called it “one of the worst genocides of civilians in modern history.”
“In two years, the Nazis killed 10,000 civilians in Mariupol. And the Russian occupiers in two months – more than 20 thousand Mariupol. More than 40,000 people were forcibly deported,” Boychenko wrote at the time on his own Telegram channel. “This is one of the worst genocides of civilians in modern history. The Russian army is purposefully and ruthlessly destroying our city and its inhabitants.”
Among those killed were more than 1,200 residents who were huddled inside a Mariupol theater with the words “children” painted outside the theater on each side.
Boychenko used words like “racists” to describe the worst his city’s residents have ever seen, saying the Russians “have already illegally deported as many Mariupol residents as Hitler’s troops during the years of occupation.”
“Racism is the fascism of the 21st century,” Boychenko wrote. “No doubts or illusions. Mankind has paid a high price for the victory over fascism in the last century. If we do not unite today and do not stop this evil, the price this time may be much higher.”
Mariupol is a strategic seaport along the Azov Sea, and also the scene where a drama theater sheltering children and women was bombed by Russian artillery. Outside the theater, on each end, were the words “Children” painted in Russian.
Newsweek reached out to the Russian Foreign Ministry for comment.
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