Battle for Mariupol wages on as 'over 5,000 residents killed'

The power struggle between Ukrainian and Russia-backed forces in Mariupol continued on Thursday (March 31) near a production plant that has become the last major stronghold for Ukrainian soldiers in the besieged port city.

The ongoing fighting in Mariupol, located in south east Ukraine on the Sea of Azov, has turned it into an arena of constant urban warfare.

Once a city of over 400,000 people, Mariupol is now one of the most dangerous places in the country.

Subject to constant shelling, the city has no running water, gas or electricity - an additional obstacle for the remaining residents in their battle for survival.

According to the city mayor’s office, around 140,000 people had fled the city before the siege began over three weeks ago.

The mayors; office also said about 150,000 more have exited since then, while nearly 5,000 residents, including children, have been killed.

Given the extent of the fighting on the streets, exact figures have proved difficult to independently verify.

Moscow calls the invasion it launched on February 24 a "special military operation" aimed at demilitarising and "denazifying" its neighbour - which Ukraine and the West have dismissed as a baseless pretext for war.

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Видео Battle for Mariupol wages on as 'over 5,000 residents killed' канала The Sun