The Russian occupation authorities of Mariupol have begun to demolish the Donetsk Regional Academic Drama Theatre, according to the mayor's adviser Petr Andryushchenko. In March, at least 300 people were killed in a theater bombing by the Russian military.
According to Andryushchenko, only the back and central parts of the building, which show the consequences of the bombing, are being dismantled. The front part of the building is left intact, as a basis for future "reconstruction". “The demolition of the ruins of the Drama Theater is an unconditional attempt to hide forever the physical evidence of the greatest simultaneous deliberate murder of Ukrainians by the Russians since the beginning of this phase of the war. The occupiers do not even hide their intentions,” writes the mayor’s adviser in his Telegram channel.
Russian aircraft attacked the Mariupol Drama Theater on March 16. At this time, more than a thousand residents of the city were hiding from shelling inside. Associated Press journalists concluded that about 600 people could have died as a result of the bombing. Amnesty International conducted a study in which it found that a Russian fighter, probably a Su-25, Su-30 or Su-34, dropped two 400-800 kg bombs on the theater building.