New satellite images from 2026 compared with 2022 imagery show the mass burial site in Manhush near Mariupol has been converted into a roadwork area. According to the Kyiv Independent, when images from 2022 are compared with new images from 2026, the Manhush site appears to have been converted into a roadwork area. The images have been published by Mariupol's former leadership, which has operated in exile since Russia occupied the city. Local authorities estimated at the time that between 3,000 and 9,000 bodies could have been buried at the Manhush site.
During the 86-day-long siege of Mariupol in eastern Ukraine in 2022, at least 22,000 civilians are estimated to have been killed. According to the Kyiv Independent, the city's drama theater was completely destroyed during the siege, where hundreds of civilians had taken shelter and the word 'CHILDREN' was written in Russian outside. According to the Kyiv Independent, the bombing of a children's hospital, where both pregnant women and children were killed, was internationally condemned.
Satellite images and eyewitness accounts provide evidence of mass graves in Mariupol. In April 2022, satellite images showed a mass grave in Vynohradne measuring 45 by 25 meters, estimated to hold at least 1,000 bodies. The Associated Press estimated at least 10,300 new graves in and around Mariupol from March through December 2022 based on satellite images. According to www.bellingcat.com, Viktoriia Moreva described that bodies of people who died in their homes in Mariupol have never been found, with many buried alive under rubble or in courtyards.
I described harrowing conditions during the siege of Mariupol, including severed utilities, Russian tanks, bodies in streets, children shot, and lack of evacuation or services.
Russian authorities deny having committed war crimes in Mariupol. Russia describes the occupation of Mariupol as having liberated it.
Eyewitness accounts provide details of the destruction and reconstruction efforts. According to www.bellingcat.com, Viktoriia Moreva described that at least seven of her neighbours were killed when her apartment block was repeatedly bombed, and the building has since been demolished. According to www.bellingcat.com, Viktoriia Moreva also stated that in Mariupol, they are building houses on bones to prevent people from returning.
Significant uncertainties remain about the civilian death toll in Mariupol and the preservation of evidence. The exact total number of civilian deaths in Mariupol during the 2022 siege remains uncertain, with estimates ranging from at least 10,300 graves to at least 22,000 killed. The full extent of war crimes committed in Mariupol and whether evidence has been successfully destroyed by Russian forces is unclear. According to the Kyiv Independent, any excavations of mass graves and identification of victims will likely be possible only when Mariupol is no longer occupied.
At least seven of my neighbours were killed when my apartment block was repeatedly bombed, and the building has since been demolished.
Russia launched a full-scale land, sea and air invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. The war is ongoing with the heaviest fighting in regions near the Ukraine-Russia border, including periodic missile strikes across Ukraine. United Nations data indicates 11,973 civilian deaths between 24 February 2022 and 30 September 2024, with 72% occurring in the first 11 months.
In the 6-month period between 19 April 2024 and 18 October 2024, ACLED data indicates 25,981 conflict events and 947 civilian deaths in Ukraine. Eight regions (Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Luhansk, Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, Chernihiv) account for over 97% of conflict events and 89% of civilian deaths, all located in East, Southeast, and Northeast Ukraine. In areas outside main conflict zones, a person is unlikely to face a real risk of serious harm from indiscriminate violence, but the situation remains fluid.
Russian forces conducted a large series of missile and drone strikes against Ukraine overnight on April 14 and 15, 2026, launching 3 Iskander-M ballistic missiles and 324 drones. The Ukrainian Air Force reported downing 309 drones (roughly 95% interception rate) and that ballistic missiles and 13 drones struck nine locations. The UK will deliver its largest-ever drone package for Ukraine in 2026, consisting of at least 120,000 drones, with deliveries beginning in April 2026.
Bodies of people who died in their homes in Mariupol have never been found, with many buried alive under rubble or in courtyards.
Russia is increasingly centralizing drone procurement for its Unmanned Systems Forces, potentially creating a drone 'famine' in regular units. Analysts at ISW say Russia took about 4,700 sq km of territory in 2025.
On June 30, Russian forces were driven from Snake Island, significantly degrading Russia's ability to project force in the western Black Sea. Russian forces captured Lysychansk in early July, giving Russia control of major population centers in Luhansk oblast, but faced stalemate at Bakhmut. Elon Musk's decision to deny Russian forces access to Starlink in February gave Ukraine an advantage, forcing Russian retreats in some areas.
According to President Zelensky, some 55,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed. The BBC has confirmed almost 160,000 names of people killed fighting on Russia's side.
In Mariupol, they are building houses on bones to prevent people from returning.
Putin's immediate aim in the 2022 invasion was regime change in Kyiv and Ukraine's subjugation, with broader goals to undo the post-Cold-War order. Russia has increased its influence in parts of the Global South and allied with China, Iran, and North Korea to promote a 'post-Western' order.
Russia is conducting an escalating campaign of sabotage and subversion against European and U.S. targets, led by the GRU, with attacks nearly tripling between 2023 and 2024. Russian attacks target transportation, government, critical infrastructure, and industry, using explosives, blunt/edged instruments, electronic attack, and weaponization of illegal immigrants.
A US-backed peace plan in November suggested Ukraine cede control of Luhansk, Donetsk, Crimea, and occupied parts of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson to Moscow. The occupation of Mariupol is now in its fifth year.
According to the Kyiv Independent, any excavations of mass graves and identification of victims will likely be possible only when Mariupol is no longer occupied. New satellite images show Mariupol districts erased, villages flattened, and cemeteries expanding rapidly, indicating mass graves and war crimes.