- It is eight years since pro-Russian soldiers were pushed out of Mariupol after a short takeover in 2014.
- Eight years later, the port city has been reclaimed by the Russians after weeks of relentless shelling.
- Russian strikes are thought to have completely destroyed 50 percent of the city’s buildings.
On the seventh anniversary of Liberation Day, commentators lamented the devastation of Mariupol; which they described as “sunny and friendly.” Today, the 13th of June, commemorates eight years since pro-Russian soldiers; were pushed out of Mariupol after a short takeover in 2014.
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Russian strikes are thought to have completely destroyed 50 percent of the city’s buildings. Food and power are in short supply today; and there are worries of a massive cholera outbreak due to a lack of clean water.
Volodymyr Groysman, Ukraine’s former prime minister, says on Facebook; “I remember Mariupol as being quite sunny and welcoming.”
“Instead of cheerful people in a park; there are now hundreds of graves.”
“Mariupol is yearning to be liberated again,” says photographer Serhiy Vahanov; recalling the Day of Liberation celebrations a year ago.
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