UN chief calls war ‘senseless’ as Russia on its way out of Ukraine’s Mariupol

The Pentagon said on Thursday that a majority of Russian forces are believed to have left the key port city of Mariupol in Ukraine after weeks of no-holds barred assault in the area which left once-a-thriving city damaged and devastated.

It is reported that one of the most recent concerns was the evacuation of civilians from the Azovstal steel plant as Kyiv kept highlighting concerns.

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While the war is in its tenth week, the UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres has yet again urged the world to unite and end the conflict. He called the war “senseless”, “ruthless” and “limitless in its potential for global harm” in his latest comments.

Meanwhile, in over 70 days of the conflict, the Russian troops have been accused of attacking over 400 healthcare institutions.

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“If you consider just medical infrastructure, as of today Russian troops have destroyed or damaged nearly 400 healthcare institutions: hospitals, maternity wards, outpatient clinics,” Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly address, Reuters reported.

“This amounts to a complete lack of medication for cancer patients. It means extreme difficulties or a complete lack of insulin for diabetes. It is impossible to carry out surgery. It even means, quite simply, a lack of antibiotics.”

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On Mariupol evacuation, he said that the Russian forces were still storming the Azovstal steel plant that was sheltering civilians and Ukraine troops.

Meanwhile, Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby was quoted as saying in reports, Moscow’s forces are still making only “plodding” and incremental progress as the main fight presses on in the eastern Donbas region.

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Currently, the world is staring at a food crisis with Russia and Ukraine together producing 30% of the global wheat supply and the UN chief, according to an AFP report.