A theater in Mariupol, Ukraine, serving as a shelter for hundreds of civilians was bombed Wednesday by Russian forces, according to its city council.
The number of victims is being assessed after Russian forces “purposefully and cynically” dropped a bomb on the drama theater located in the heart of the southeastern Ukrainian city, the council wrote in a Telegram message.
HUMANITARIAN CONVOY SENT TO MARIUPOL TARGETED BY RUSSIAN GUNFIRE, UKRAINE SAYS
“It is still impossible to estimate the scale of this horrific and inhumane act, because the city continues to shell residential areas. It is known that after the bombing, the central part of the Drama Theater was destroyed, and the entrance to the bomb shelter in the building was destroyed,” the council wrote.
A photo shared by the council showed the rubble of what used to be the building with smoke engulfing the surrounding area.
The council described the attack as “genocide of the Ukrainian people” and said it was “impossible to find words that could describe the level of cruelty cynicism with which the Russian occupiers are destroying the civilian population.”
The theater was the city’s largest shelter in size and number, said an adviser to the mayor of Mariupol, Petro Andriushchenko, according to CNN.
“According to preliminary data, more than a 1,000 people were hiding there. The number of dead and injured is unknown. The probability of getting there to dismantle the rubble is low due to constant shelling and bombing of the city,” Andriushchenko said.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Conditions in Mariupol have worsened in the past week, as reports say that many civilians are going without food, water, or electricity while fighting continues in the area.
Since Russian forces invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 636 civilians were killed and more than 1,125 injured as of Monday, reported the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
