160,000 civilians trapped in Ukraine's besieged Mariupol city: Mayor

By Bahtiyar Abdulkerimov

KYIV, Ukraine (AA) – Around 160,000 civilians are trapped in Mauripol, the mayor of the besieged Ukrainian city said on Monday.

“Unfortunately, there are still a lot of people in Mariupol. The figure is over 100,000. According to our estimates, around 160,000 civilians are in the city,” Vadym Boychenko said on local television.

He described the Russian military’s actions as a “genocide of people in Mariupol.”

With no electricity, heating and water supplies, he said it was now impossible to live in Mariupol.

The Russians promised to open a humanitarian corridor in Mariupol but they are the ones actually preventing it, Boychenko added.

At least 1,151 civilians have been killed and 1,824 injured in Ukraine since Russia launched war on its neighbor in Feb. 24, according to the UN, which has said that the true figure is likely far higher.

More than 3.86 million Ukrainians have fled to neighboring countries, with millions more displaced inside the country, according to the UN refugee agency.