Attempts at civilian evacuations in Ukraine were halted Saturday as reports circulated that the temporary ceasefire had been violated by Russian forces.
Mariupol, a port city in southeastern Ukraine on the coast of the Sea of Azov, has reported some of the worst conditions throughout the Russian invasion. Journalists had taken to social media to show the regular and indiscriminate shelling had heavily damaged civilian areas throughout the week.
Video verified by The New York Times shows civilian areas burning and destroyed in Mariupol, Ukraine. By @MashaFroliak @heytherehaley @dim109 @sskerrr pic.twitter.com/uyGuxjTSwf
— Ainara Tiefenthäler (@tiefenthaeler) March 4, 2022
Mariupol is on the verge of a humanitarian catastrophe. The city is under fire from Russian troops. Houses are destroyed, there's no heat,electricity,water & food.
Having spent all my childhood in Ukraine – it's heartbreaking to see what the Russian army has done to the country pic.twitter.com/s0faj64VRw
— Hanna Liubakova (@HannaLiubakova) March 4, 2022
Because of the great risk to the civilian population, Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy had announced overnight that a ceasefire had been brokered with the Russians and it was scheduled to begin Saturday morning.
Considered a key strategic location for Russia, less than three hours after the ceasefire was slated to commence, Mariupol officials declared that the evacuation was postponed, the BBC reported.
“We ask the people in Mariupol to head for the shelter, there will be more information on the evacuation asap,” a statement read. “Due to the fact that the Russian side is not sticking to the ceasefire and continues to shoot Mariupol itself and the outskirts, the evacuation has been postponed.”
Meanwhile, the Associated Press reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin has laid the blame on the Ukrainians. Calling into question the future status of Ukraine, Putin said, “If this happens, it will be entirely on their conscience.”
**WARNING: Graphic Content**
(Source: YouTube)
Many have reported back from Mariupol that they were doubtful the calls for evacuation were legitimate and instead hunkered down for safety. Kate Romanova said she spoke to her parents who had been experiencing “non-stop shelling” in Mariupol.
“Someone told me there were loudspeakers in the city that spread information about evacuation but people there don’t know if they can trust it,” Romanova said, “they think it might be fake Russian information.”
Mariupol’s deputy mayor Serhiy Orlov said, “There is no ceasefire in Mariupol and there is no ceasefire all along the route. Our civilians are ready to escape but they cannot escape under shelling.”
Zelenskyy expressed his concern that NATO has not done enough when he announced the planned ceasefire and petitioned again for a no-fly zone.
“We believe that NATO countries have created a narrative that closing the skies over Ukraine would provoke Russia’s direct aggression against NATO,” Zelenksyy stated. “This is the self-hypnosis of those who are weak, insecure inside, despite the fact they possess weapons many times stronger than we have.”
NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg said on the matter of no-fly zones, “We understand the desperation, but we also believe that if we did that, would end up with something that could end in a full-fledged war in Europe involving many more countries and causing much more human suffering,” Fox News reported.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in part, “the only way to actually implement something like a no-fly zone is to send NATO planes into Ukrainian airspace and shoot down Russian planes, and that could lead to a full-fledged war in Europe.”
Blinken, asked at ongoing presser if the 'no' to a no-fly zone is set in stone, echoes NATO SecGen and says "we have a responsibility…to ensure that the war doesn't spill over even beyond Ukraine"https://t.co/77EAPL2XSc
— Olivia Gazis (@Olivia_Gazis) March 4, 2022
Putin endorsed NATO’s concerns when he warned Saturday if a no-fly zone were implemented, “That very second, we will view them as participants of the military conflict, and it would not matter what members they are.”
As diplomatic efforts continue throughout Europe and millions are projected to be in need of humanitarian relief, Zelenskyy declared further bloodshed was now shared by NATO and Russia stating, “all the people who die from this day forward will also die because of you.”
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Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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