Horrific footage has revealed the devastation inside the Mariupol theatre which was bombed by Russian forces with civilians seen fleeing the wreckage.
The Drama Theatre of Mariupol, where hundreds including children had been sheltering, was hit by the deadly airstrike last Wednesday, killing what is believed to be at least 300 people.
"From witnesses comes information that about 300 people died in the Mariupol Drama Theatre as a result of the bombing by a
Russian plane," Mariupol city council said in a statement on Friday.
"Up until the very last moment, one does not want to believe this horror. But the words of those who were inside the building
at the time of this terrorist act says the opposite."
Now, dramatic video shows injured civilians covered in dust making their way out of the damaged building after it was bombed.
Some can be seen walking down stairs, while others are heard comforting those around them.
Rubble is strewn over the floor in a part of the building which is still standing, while the video then pans to a large section of debris just metres away.
Russian forces bombed the theatre last week despite a large inscription saying "children" being clearly visible on the pavement outside.
Local officials, citing witness accounts, said on Friday that as many as 300 people may have been killed in the theatre bombing. The city council made clear it was still not possible to determine the exact death toll after the incident.
The Ukrainian government has previously said that it was impossible to tell how many were killed because Mariupol is in chaos and under almost constant bombardment from besieging Russian forces.
Russia has denied bombing the theatre. The Kremlin says Russian forces have not targeted civilians after invading Ukraine on Feb. 24.
Ukrainian officials have said that about 130 people were rescued from the rubble and that the theatre basement, where local officials said many people were sheltering at the time of the bombardment, had withstood the attack.
Ukraine officials believe more than 2,300 people have died in the Mariupol siege and those remaining are starving and suffering a lack of water.
And there is increasing alarm over the fate of those locals who manage to escape the hell of Mariupol. The city council revealed Russian troops are kidnapping civilians, possibly as many as 5,000 so far, and processing them into Russia, confiscating their passports.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said the siege on Mariupol was "a terror that will be remembered for centuries to come".
Professor Mark Galeotti, principal director of Mayak Intelligence, said Mariupol has been "comprehensively trashed" by the bombardment, but civilian casualties will continue to rise in coming days.
"In the grand scheme of things the Russians aren't in a position to escalate, but the point is that they've chosen Mariupol as a key target," he said.
"Mariupol has become a symbolic site of resistance and one way or another they will make sure that they take it."
He continued: "For Putin every extra city he can take is an extra bargaining chip."
He said that with the city completely cut off, every Ukrainian troop killed would be one less enemy to fight, as reinforcements are unable to reach Mariupol.
