Russia bombs maternity hospital, images show pregnant women being rescued from rubble

Several Ukrainians, including young children and pregnant women, have been left injured after Russia bombed a maternity hospital in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol. The Russian strike has reportedly left at least 17 people injured.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shared the harrowing images of the site wherein an injured pregnant woman could be seen being taken to safety by rescue workers. The hospital staff and women in labour also sustained wounds in the attack.

"Mariupol. Direct strike of Russian troops at the maternity hospital. People, children are under the wreckage. Atrocity!" Zelensky wrote in a Twitter post.

"How much longer will the world be an accomplice ignoring terror? Close the sky right now! Stop the killings! You have power but you seem to be losing humanity."

The bombing comes days after Ukraine appealed to the western nations and NATO to declare a no-fly zone over the country so as to avoid civilian casualties. But countries, including the US and the UK, rejected the request stating that it would mean shooting down Russian planes and starting a war.

The clips shared on social media show one building that was completely destroyed and with wounded people being evacuated by the Ukrainian authorities. Ukrainian Foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba has asked its allies to send more aircraft to the country to help fight Russia.

"The destruction is colossal. The building of the medical facility where the children were treated recently is completely destroyed. Information on casualties is being clarified," Mariupol city council wrote in a Facebook post.

Heart-breaking images of bodies lying in streets have surfaced as Russia continues to bombard the city. The Red Cross has called the crisis "apocalyptic."

"This situation is really apocalyptic for people, it is getting worse, they are running out of essential supplies. We've depleted our stocks. As I said, it stands to reason that people are coming to the end of whatever supplies they had," said Red Cross spokeswoman Ewan Watson.

Ukrainian authorities have claimed that at least 1,170 civilians have been killed in Mariupol since Russia invaded the city. The US has said that the Russian has been using "dumb bombs," which are basically unguided missiles, per a report by The Independent.

Meanwhile, the US has again rejected the idea of declaring a no-fly zone over Ukraine. "The reality is that setting up a no-fly zone would lead to a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia, and that is not what we're looking at," said US Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.

"What we're looking at is making sure that the Ukrainians are able to defend their open country with the best possible selection of anti-tank weapons and anti-air defence systems," she added.