'I can't imagine returning': How Russia is rebuilding Mariupol into a Russian city
A year since Russia took control of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, plans for reconstruction are under way, but former residents aren't convinced. LONDON -- A year since Russia took control of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, plans for reconstruction are under way but former residents aren't convinced. The siege of Mariupol started the day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and ended on May 20, 2022. The battle ended with the surrender of the last Ukrainian fighters at their final stronghold -- the Azovstal steel plant. Katya Plechystova got a call on that day from an unknown number. It was her husband Oleg. For three months he had been defending their hometown while fighting for the Ukrainian army. They hadn’t spoken -- except for the very occasional text message -- since before the invasion. “He said that they are leaving the plant, that this is just an evacuation through Russia and that they have guarantees that everything would be fine,” Katya says. That was the last time ...