Kyiv: Ukrainian officials in the strategic port city of Mariupol said Friday some 300 people could have died in last week’s Russian strike on a theatre where hundreds were sheltering.
“From eyewitnesses, information is emerging that about 300 people died in the Drama Theatre of Mariupol following strikes by a Russian aircraft,” Mariupol city hall wrote on Telegram.
Mariupol is currently completely cut off from the rest of Ukraine and is running low on resources. The city has reportedly rationed its supplies.
Hungary rejects Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s appeal for weapons
Hungary’s prime minister on Friday rejected an emotional appeal from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to supply Ukraine with weapons and support sanctions on Russia’s energy sector. Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in a video posted to social media that Zelenskyy’s requests were against Hungary’s interests, and that sanctions on Russian energy would mean that the Hungarian economy would slow down and then stop within moments. The rejection came after Zelenskyy on Thursday addressed a meeting of European Union leaders in Brussels where he specifically addressed Orban, who is widely considered Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest ally in the EU. Listen, Viktor, do you know what is happening in Mariupol? Zelenskyy said. I want to be open once and for all you should decide for yourself, who you are for.
Hungary, alone among EU countries bordering Ukraine, has declined to supply its neighbour with weapons and refused to allow weapons shipments to cross its border into Ukraine. On Friday, Orban said that 85% of Hungary’s gas and more than 60% of its oil comes from Russia, and that blocking Russian energy exports would force Hungarians to pay the price of the war
Ukrainian aid centre hit by Russian shelling, four killed, say police
Russian shelling hit a clinic that was acting as a centre for humanitarian aid in the eastern city of Kharkiv, killing four people, the regional police said in a statement on Friday. “As a result of the morning shelling of civilian infrastructure from multiple rocket launchers, 7 civilians were injured, 4 of whom died,” said a statement on social media. “There is no military facility nearby.” Reuters could not independently verify the report.
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