40,000 civilians deported from Mariupol - city mayor - INTERNATIONAL AGENCY FOR JOURNALISM AND STRATEGIC STUDIES

40,000 civilians deported from Mariupol - city mayor

2022-04-19 02:03:24

Ukrainian claims accusing Russia of relocating thousands of civilians from Mariupol, the port city devastated by shelling. Speaking on Monday, the mayor of Mariupol said about 40,000 civilians from the city had been "forcibly deported" to Russia or Russian-controlled regions of Ukraine. Speaking on Ukrainian television, Vadym Boichenko said the numbers had been "verified through the municipal register". It was not possible to independently confirm the figures and Russia has denied targeting civilians. Sources in Kyiv says the forced deportations have been mentioned before and were very difficult to verify. More than 400,000 people lived in Mariupol before the invasion, and at least 140,000 thousands managed to escape from the city.