Ukraine invasion: Russian forces bomb theatre housing civilians in besieged city of Mariupol

Russian forces have bombed a theatre in the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol, which was sheltering more than 1,000 civilians.

The city’s deputy mayor Serhiy Orlov said the number of casualties was not yet known.

Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba called the attack a “horrendous war crime”. On Twitter, Kuleba said: “Massive Russian attack on the Drama Theater where hundreds of innocent civilians were hiding. The building is now fully ruined. Russians could not have not known this was a civilian shelter. Save Mariupol! Stop Russian war criminals!”

Another horrendous war crime in Mariupol. Massive Russian attack on the Drama Theater where hundreds of innocent civilians were hiding. The building is now fully ruined. Russians could not have not known this was a civilian shelter. Save Mariupol! Stop Russian war criminals! pic.twitter.com/bIQLxe7mli

— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) March 16, 2022

Earlier, strikes on a high-rise building in the northern city of Chernihiv killed at least 13 people who were waiting in a queue for bread.

The attacks came on the same day Ukrainian President Zelenskyy addressed the US Congress and pleaded for a no-fly zone to be imposed on his country and for more sanctions on Russia.

US President Joe Biden confirmed the US will commit $1bn in direct transfer of weapons to Ukrainian forces.

Later in a press conference with journalists, Biden called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “war criminal” for the first time.

The Kremlin has reacted with fury, labelling Biden's comments “unacceptable and unforgivable rhetoric”.

Meanwhile, NATO has continued to deploy more forces on its eastern flank in Europe to bolster defences there but has ruled out imposing a no-fly zone, which in the words of secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg would only escalate matters.