Marked with the word “children” in sheets of sulfite on the windshield, hundreds of cars with Ukrainians lined up in Zaporijia towards Mariupol, which has been surrounded by Russian troops for four weeks.
Often described by conflict-displaced people as hell, as the city in southeastern Ukraine has been heavily bombed by the Moscow army, Mariupol is strategic because, if taken, it would form a land route from Crimea, annexed by the Russians in 2014, to the Donbass, a region in the east of the country where Lugansk and Donetsk are located, which concentrate pro-Russian separatists.
The repeated failures in negotiations between Moscow and Kiev to establish a ceasefire in the city not only prevented many civilians from leaving Mariupol, but also made it impossible for humanitarian NGOs, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, to operate in the area.
According to reports from those who managed to flee, the population that stayed in Mariupol lives under constant attacks that have already destroyed most of the buildings and killed an as yet unknown number of people – report in the New York Times, citing an interview with Piotr Andriuchtchenko, government adviser. As of March 15, 2,400 civilians killed in the city had been identified.
The figure, already high, since the United Nations has so far counted the deaths of 925 civilians across the country — the organization admits that the calculation underrepresents the real number —, should also reflect only a small part of the deaths in Mariupol. Andryuchchenko’s estimate, which has not provided evidence to support his claim, is that the total could be as high as 20,000.
Even in the face of this scenario, civilians who managed to flee the city are now trying to return to rescue family members. To do this, they take supplies, medicines, clothes, water and even tools, such as shovels, hoes and sledgehammers, useful for digging among the rubble of buildings destroyed by bombings.
One of them is Oleg — he did not give his last name —, 47, who was born in Mariupol and managed to take part of his family there, but not all of his relatives. Now, on his third attempt, he wants to pick up his ex-wife, son, sister-in-law and her son. “The only thing on my mind is that I need to get there. It doesn’t matter how.”
Can you explain what you are going to do? I took part of my family from Mariupol to Dnipro on the last day of February and was on my way back to get the rest of my relatives out of there, but I failed because the city was blocked. Now, for the past three days, I’ve tried to leave Zaporijia to somehow get to Mariupol and find a way to rescue my family. It’s my third attempt, the two previous ones failed because nobody gave us permission to leave Zaporijia.
This time we’re not going to follow the official convoy, we’re going to advance on our own, without any records, because they say it can work that way. So in five minutes we’re leaving in five cars. If we fail, we’ll try again tomorrow and the day after tomorrow too. Because the people there are starving, without water, we have to help them as soon as possible.
Are you in contact with the people you are going to try to rescue? Do not. I don’t know where they are, whether they’re alive or not. I’ve been out of contact with them since March 2nd. There is no connection or other ways to communicate with them. Like I said, I don’t even know if they’re still alive or not.
Who in your family is still in Mariupol? My ex-wife, my son, my sister-in-law and her son.
You are in a small car. How will you transport them? I’ll squeeze them into the car. I’m going to throw away any belongings, to make sure people, first of all, fit in the car.
You have not been to Berdiansk or other areas under Russian control. How are you preparing to deal with the Russian military? I will remain calm, I will not behave aggressively. We are all human beings, I think they will understand my situation, understand that we have to rescue our loved ones. They have families too, I suppose. Anyway, I have no other option, I need to get out there, get to my family and get them out of this hell.
What’s on your mind right now, minutes before heading to Mariupol? The only thing on my mind is that I need to get there. It doesn’t matter how. It’s the first and last thing on my mind. My current wife is in Dnipro, waiting for me, about to have a heart attack knowing I’m going to this hell, but there’s no one else but me who’s going to rescue my family.
How long do you think it will take to Mariupol? Unpredictable. Some people get there in three hours, others take two days. I am physically prepared for this. I don’t even know if I’ll be able to leave Zaporijia, there are rumors that our military won’t let us leave without official permission, something I tried to get for two days in a row — and I couldn’t. I have tried every possible way to get to Mariupol, and if I can’t make it again, I’ll try again the next day.
What do you work with? I work for an international humanitarian organization. I don’t want to say the name of the organization, but before I worked helping what we call the IDPs, and now my family members have become IDPs too. I continue to work, I continue to help people and I will continue to do so, but first I need to rescue the people I love.
