According to reports, Russia has continued its attack on Ukraine and its people. During the early morning hours of March 9, reports state that Russian forces bombed a maternity hospital in Mariupol after agreeing to a 12-hour ceasefire that would allow refugees to evacuate from the towns and cities that have been seeing the worst of the war.
Following an Agreement to Cease Fire, Ukraine Says Russia Bombed an Active Maternity Hospital
The bombing reportedly took place around 5 p.m. local time and resulted in a large crater, known down trees, and rubble everywhere.
In a statement, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky called the attack on the hospital a “direct strike” and an “atrocity.” He then repeated his pleas to NATO calling for the military alliance to declare a no-fly zone over Ukraine.
“How much longer will the world be an accomplice ignoring terror?” Zelensky wrote. “Close the sky right now! Stop the killings! You have power but you seem to be losing humanity.”
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According to The Wall Street Journal, the airstrike resulted in adults and children being buried under rubble. It’s unclear exactly how many people were harmed as a result of the bombing, CNN reports. No casualties have been reported as of 12:00 p.m. on March 9.
Mariupol city council posted a video of the targeted hospital, saying that Russian troops dropped several bombs on the hospital from the air. “The destruction is enormous,” said the council, according to CNN. “The building of the medical facility where the children were treated recently is completely destroyed.”
Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said that following the countries agreeing on a temporary cease-fire Ukraine had put together several evacuation plans for civilians to use during that time. This is just one of a handful of failed attempts to evacuate Ukrainian civilians amidst Russia’s brutal attack.
Additionally, 50 buses were stranded while traveling out of Bucha due to fighting that had begun after another agreement between Russia and Ukraine to open up evacuation routes to civilians.