President Zelensky: Mariupol Has Been Destroyed, Tens Of Thousands Of People Have Died

Kondisi di Mariupol, Ukraina. (Wikimedia Commons/MVS.gov.ua/Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine)

JAKARTA - Ukrainian authorities say tens of thousands of people may have died in an attack by Russian forces on the city of Mariupol, while members of the ombudsman suspect that Moscow soldiers in the region carried out torture and executions.

Reuters has confirmed widespread devastation in Mariupol, but was unable to verify the alleged crimes or estimates of those killed in the strategic city, which lies between Russian-annexed Crimea and eastern Ukraine held by Russian-backed separatists.

"Mariupol has been destroyed, there are tens of thousands of people killed, but even so, the Russians did not stop their attacks," President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a video address to members of South Korea's Parliament without giving further details.

If confirmed, it would be the largest death toll so far reported in a single place in Ukraine, where towns and villages have been bombarded relentlessly and bodies, including civilians, seen in the streets.

Meanwhile, the head of the self-proclaimed Russian-backed Donetsk People's Republic, Denis Pushilin, told Russian news agency RIA on Monday that more than 5.000 people may have died in Mariupol. He said Ukrainian forces were responsible.

Separately, the number of people leaving the city has dropped as Russian troops have slowed checks before departure, Petro Andryushchenko, an aide to the mayor of Mariupol, said Monday on the Telegram messaging service.

About 10.000 people are awaiting inspection by Russian troops, he said. Russia does not allow military personnel to go with civilian refugees. There was no immediate comment from Moscow, which has previously blamed Ukraine for obstructing the evacuation.

Citing figures from the Mariupol City Government, Ukraine's human rights ombudswoman Lyudmyla Denisova said 33.000 Mariupol residents had been deported to Russia or territory controlled by Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine.

Russia said on Sunday it had "evacuated" 723.000 people from Ukraine since the start of what it called "special operations", denying attacking civilians.

"Witnesses reported that the Russian national guard forces and the 'Kadyrovite' (Chechen) units carried out illegal arrests, tortured detainees and executed them for their pro-Ukrainian stance," in Mariupol, Denisova said in a Telegram post.

The Russian government did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the torture allegations.

Ukrainian Interior Ministry adviser Anton Geraschenko said in a televised interview on Monday, that Ukrainian "deportees" were placed in guarded sanatoria and holiday camps.

"These people are not allowed to move freely, or have free access to communication platforms to contact their relatives in Ukraine," he said, without citing direct evidence.

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk told Reuters the number of checkpoints along the Russian-controlled corridor from Mariupol to the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia had grown from three to 15.

Mariupol was among nine humanitarian corridors agreed with Russia on Monday to evacuate people from the besieged eastern region, but the corridors were only for private cars, Vereshchuk said on Telegram.

"It is impossible to agree on the provision of buses," he said.

Ukraine says Russian troops are gathering for new offensives in the east, including Mariupol, where people have been without water, food, and energy supplies for weeks.