Satellite recorded a "tent town" built by occupiers for Ukrainians near Mariupol
Cars stop near a new temporary camp, apparently for people fleeing Mariupol, Ukraine, on March 22. Photo: Maxar Technologies
Satellite images and videos show that in recent weeks the occupiers have begun building a camp east of Mariupol.
The photos were checked by The Washington Post.
It is noted that for two days the queue of cars left Mariupol and stopped near the camp near the M14 highway in the territory controlled by Russia. This came amid allegations from the Mariupol City Council that Russian troops were forcibly evacuating residents to "filtration camps."
The British news agency I reported on the camp on Sunday, citing satellite images published by Planet Labs.
Pictures of the village of Bezimenne were taken on Tuesday and provided by The Post by Maxar Technologies.
Leaders of the so-called "DPR" on Wednesday through their Telegram channel said that together with the Russian authorities, they set up a "tent camp for 30 tents" for Mariupol, with a capacity of up to 450 people.
The accompanying video, which is geolocated by The Post, shows the constructions. Respondents in the video say that they recently arrived from Mariupol.
The Ministry of Emergencies of Russia stated that the tent camp in Bezymenne was "viable" for refugees from Mariupol. Russia is acting "like a convoy with humanitarian aid," ministry official Serhii Holova said in a video released on Wednesday. According to him, Russian troops provided residents with "everything they need," such as mobile phones and medical care.
Last week, Ukraine accused Russian troops of forcibly relocating hundreds of thousands of civilians to Russia against their will. Moscow said the refugees had voluntarily fled east during the war.
Ukraine opposes any route of the evacuation of civilians to Russia or its ally Belarus.
