War and pics: Civilian death toll continues to rise as Russia escalates attack on Ukraine
More than 9,000 civilians were evacuated from combat zones on Friday, including almost 5,000 from the besieged southern city of Mariupol as the Ukraine war continues. The number of refugees reaching Poland from Ukraine now exceeds 2 million, mostly women with children.
Russian troops reach Mariupol city centre
In Mariupol daily life is a series of harrowing escapes from bomb blasts and basic survival rituals, amid the rubble that lies everywhere. Uncollected corpses wrapped in blankets, coats or any available covering lie in courtyards cleared of debris.
Some 400,000 people have been trapped in the strategic port city on the Sea of Azov for more than two weeks, sheltering from heavy bombardment that has severed central supplies of electricity, heating and water, according to local authorities.
Civilian death toll rising
U.N. rights office reported 816 confirmed civilian deaths. Kyiv officials said 222 people were killed in the capital since the start of the war, including 60 civilians and four children. Meanwhile, border crossings from Ukraine have slowed in recent days but could rise again if conditions in the west of the country worsened, U.N refugee agency said. U.N. says 3.27 million have fled since Feb. 24, with further 2 million displaced inside the country.
Zelenskyy calls for justice for Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy released a video on Saturday, saying that he wants a serious conversation with Moscow as "the time has come to restore territorial integrity and justice for Ukraine". "I want everyone to hear me now, especially (those) in Moscow. The time has come for a meeting; it is time to talk," Zelenskyy said.
Biden warns Xi of 'consequences' if China backs Russia
US President Joe Biden warned his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping that there would be "implications and consequences" for Beijing if it chose to provide direct "material support" to Russia amid its invasion of Ukraine and increasing attacks on civilians, the White House has said.
The 110-minute secure video call on Friday was the first conversation between the two leaders since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The talks between Biden and Xi largely focused on Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the implications for the US.-China relationship and international order, a senior White House official told reporters.
Russia launches missile strikes
The Russian Aerospace Forces have launched rocket attacks on the strongholds of Ukrainian "nationalists", the Defence Ministry in Moscow said. According to the Ministry, the forces carried out the strikes in pairs from low and extremely low altitudes, RT News reported.
"As a result of an air strike, a stronghold of a company of Ukrainian nationalists and camouflaged armoured vehicles were destroyed," it said.
Putin rallies behind troops while lethal fire rains down
As Russian troops rained lethal fire on Ukrainian cities, Vladimir Putin appeared at a huge flag-waving rally to lavish praise on his Russian forces, while Ukrainian's president accused the Kremlin of deliberately creating “a humanitarian catastrophe.”
Russia's president addressed the packed Moscow stadium Friday, saying the Kremlin's troops had fought “shoulder to shoulder” and supported each other. “We have not had unity like this for a long time,” he told the cheering crowd.
