Ukraine war: Images reveal scale of destruction in Mariupol

Image source, Sergei Orlov

The scale of the destruction in the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol has been revealed in a series of photos and satellite images.

Residential areas have been flattened, a shopping centre destroyed and a maternity hospital attacked. The southern port city has used at least one mass grave to bury the dead.

Mariupol, a city of about 400,000, has been subjected to days of heavy bombardment.

Its people are running dangerously short of food and water, the city's deputy mayor Sergei Orlov, says, and there is "no electricity, no water supply, no heating, no sanitary system".

People are being forced to melt snow to drink, and chop wood to cook and keep warm in sub-zero temperatures, he says.

Image source, Sergei Orlov

On Wednesday, three people - including a child - were killed and 17 wounded in a devastating strike that destroyed a maternity ward and children's ward of a hospital.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the attack as a war crime.

Image source, Reuters

A short distance away, damage could be seen on the roads close to the university, which also suffered heavy damage.

Images from satellite technology company Maxar have also revealed damage to residential areas to the south and east of the city, now virtually cut off from the outside world.

Another image shows the damage done to a shopping centre to the west. The roofs of two buildings have been completely destroyed.

Mariupol is a key strategic target for Russia. Seizing it would allow Russian-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine to join forces with troops in Crimea - the southern peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.