The Russian invasion of Ukraine is about to enter its second month. Russia has continued to focus its force on the southern Ukrainian port city of Mariupol which has faced several days of deadly bombings and street fighting.

Last week, Russian forces shelled a theater in Mariupol where hundreds of civilians were said to be sheltering. Street fighting in the area has made recovering any survivors an incredibly challenging task. Many are feared to be trapped under rubble. Those who have managed to escape the city have described the horrendous conditions.

Ukrainian MP Yaroslav Zhelezniak’s sister escaped Mariupol last week. She told the BBC, “People are always scared that some bomb, some weapon, some blast will kill them. There are a lot of dead bodies in the street, a lot of buildings are on fire, a lot of buildings have been destroyed, a lot of bomb shelters have been destroyed with people, once again, inside.”
The fight for the control of Ukrainian airspace is still underway. Control of the sky was one of Russia’s main objectives when they first invaded, and Ukrainian forces are attempting to maintain control of the airspace.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to come to the negotiating table and has requested that other countries around the world continue to sanction Russia and Russian oligarchs.

The total number of refugees that have now fled Ukraine has exceeded 3.3 million and is continuing to rise.