“Bombs are falling every 10 minutes,” says Ukrainian official in Mariupol

The city of Mariupol was the target of several attacks in the early hours of Monday (21), local Ukrainian forces informed the CNN.

“Bombs are dropping every 10 minutes. Russian navy warships are bombing. Yesterday, soldiers disarmed four tanks, [assim como] armored vehicles and troops. We still need ammunition, anti-tank weapons and air defense,” said Captain Svyatoslav Palamar of the Azov National Guard Regiment in Mariupol.

Palamar said he and his companions would not surrender in Mariupol.

The Russian-issued deadline for authorities in Mariupol to hand over the city passed 5:00 am Moscow time (23:00 GMT on Sunday), with Ukrainians rejecting the ultimatum.

The port city of Mariupol, which before the war was home to around 450,000 people, has been under near constant attack by Russian forces since early March, with satellite imagery showing significant destruction in residential areas.

While the Russian ultimatum appeared to offer those who chose to surrender safe passage out of the city, it offered no such guarantees for the rest.

Russia has been repeatedly accused of attacking civilians, with imprisoned residents describing the attack as “hell”.

The Russian attacks led to a total collapse of basic services, with residents without access to gas, electricity or water. Bodies are being dumped on the street because either there is no one to pick them up, or it’s just too dangerous to try.

A city official said people were afraid to leave their underground shelters even to get hold of essentials, meaning they were trying to drink less water and eat less food, only going out to prepare hot meals.

On Sunday, the Mariupol City Council said residents were being taken to Russia against their will by Russian forces. Captured residents of Mariupol were taken to camps where Russian forces checked their phones and documents, then redirected some of the residents to remote cities in Russia, the council said.

Russia has denied the allegations.

Why does Mariupol matter?

The city is a strategic port on a stretch of coast that connects the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas with the Crimean peninsula. Russian-backed separatists have formed breakaway states in parts of the Donbas, and Crimea has been under Russian control since 2014.

Russian forces appear to be trying to take full control of the area to create a land corridor between the two regions, clamping down on Mariupol with military brutality.