Battle summary

BlockadeFrom the start of the war on Feb 24, 2022, Mariupol comes under constant shelling, forcing residents to take cover in basements. The attacks knock out power and water supplies and prevent residents from burying their dead. Within a week Russian forces and pro-Russian fighters in the surrounding Donbas region have surrounded the city.

Maternity ward bombedOn March 9, a Russian airstrike on a maternity ward and paediatric hospital leaves five people dead, including a heavily pregnant woman who is photographed being stretchered to safety. She died shortly after.