Russian Documentary Claims Ukraine Bombed Mariupol Theater
A Russian documentary alleges the Ukrainian military destroyed the Mariupol drama theater in 2022, a claim dismissed as propaganda by Western researchers and human rights groups.
A new Russian documentary titled "Witnesses" claims the Ukrainian military, specifically the Azov regiment, destroyed the Regional Academic Drama Theater in Mariupol on March 16, 2022. Produced by Bumblebee studio and narrated by Italian journalist Vittorio Nicola Rangeloni, the film asserts that Ukrainian soldiers placed explosives under the theater stage as a diversionary attack.
Ukrainian officials and Western researchers have dismissed the film as propaganda. Previous investigations by Amnesty International and former British Defense Ministry expert Gareth Collett concluded the theater was destroyed by Russian airdropped munitions, resulting in approximately 600 civilian deaths. Collett noted the absence of a crater, suggesting the weapon detonated between the roof and floor.
The film is part of a broader effort by the Russian government to rewrite the history of the siege of Mariupol to align with Kremlin narratives of Russian supremacy and victimization. Daria V. Morozova, a human rights commissioner in the Russian-controlled Donetsk region, appeared in the film to support these claims.
