Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Horrific Scenes in Bucha After Russian Soldiers Retreated; World Leaders Condemn the Killings in Bucha, Ukraine; Russian Military Hit Mykolaiv; Russians Destroy Odessa Oil Refinery. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired April 04, 2022 - 02:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello everyone, I'm John Vause live in Lviv, Ukraine. We'd like to welcome our viewers in the United States and all around the world. We begin with mounting evidence of possible war crimes here in Ukraine committed by Russian forces withdrawing from the Kyiv region.

There's new images of the brutality and the horror of this war. And a warning, we're about to show you those images, but they are disturbing and some viewers will find them hard to watch. CNN teams are on the ground recording these images of a mass grave in Bucha. That's just north of Kyiv.

The mayor says up to 300 people many of them civilians could be buried there. The discovery of that mass grave came soon after the images revealed bodies strewn across the streets there in Bucha, some with hands tied behind their backs. Other seemingly killed execution style with a shot to the back of the head.

The horrific scenes in Bucha which is northwest of Kyiv drew swift condemnation from world leaders many demanding war crimes investigations as well as accountability. Meantime, Ukraine's president accusing Russia of trying to wipe out his entire country and its people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: Indeed, this is genocide. The elimination of the whole nation and the people. We are the citizens of Ukraine. We have more than 100 nationalities. This is about the destruction and extermination of all these nationalities. We are the citizens of Ukraine and we don't want to be subdued to the policy of Russian federation. This is the reason we are being destroyed and exterminated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Russia denies targeting civilians. The ministry of defense in Moscow claims the images from Bucha are fake. But similar stories have emerged across this country. On Sunday, Human Rights Watch said it had documented allegations of war crimes in areas not just around Kyiv but also Kharkiv and Chernihiv.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen travel to Bucha to witness first hand these atrocities carried out during what the Kremlin calls is a special military operation. And again, a warning. His report includes disturbing and graphic images.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: As the Russians continue to withdraw from areas here around Kyiv and towards the border with Belarus and the Ukrainians move into these territories, I think two things are becoming increasingly clear. On the one hand a lot more Russian military hardware was taken out than anybody would have thought. And on the other hand, a lot more civilians also came to harm as well. We witnessed some of that first hand. Here's what we saw.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN (voice-over): As Russian forces retreat from the area north of Kyiv, in their wake, scenes of utter destruction. Whole blocks of houses flattened. Ukrainian authorities saying they believe dead bodies are still lying underneath. But here, the dead also lay in the open.

Ukrainian national police showed us this mass grave in Bucha saying they believed up to 150 civilians might be buried here, but no one knows the exact number. People killed while the Russian army occupied this town.

This is what it looks like when the hope is crushed. Vladimir has been searching for his younger brother Dmitri. Now he's convinced Dmitri lies here, even though he can't be 100 percent sure. The neighbor accompanying him with strong words for the Russians.

Why do you hate us so much, she asks? Since the 1930's you've been abusing Ukraine. You just want to destroy us. You want us gone. But we will be, everything will be okay. I believe it.

Video from Bucha shows bodies in the streets after Russian forces left the area. Some images even show bodies with hands tied behind their backs. The Russian defense ministry denies killing civilians and claims images of dead civilians are "fake."

But we met a family just returning to their house in Borodyanka, which they say was occupied by Russian soldiers. They show us the body of a dead man in civilian clothes they had found in the backyard. His hands and feet tied with severe bruises and a shell casing still laying nearby.

Russia's military appears to have suffered heavy losses before being driven out of the area around Kyiv. This column of armored vehicles in Bucha completely destroyed.

(On camera): The way the Ukrainians tell us is that the Russians were trying to go towards Kyiv and they were then intercepted by Ukrainian drones, artillery and also the Javelin anti-tank weapons. It's not clear how many Russians were killed here but they say many were and others fled the scene.

(Voice-over): A national police officer says the Russian troops were simply too arrogant.

[02:05:01]

They thought they could drive on the streets and just go through, he says. That they would be greeted as though it's all right. Maybe they think it is normal to drive around looting, to destroy buildings and to mock people, but our people didn't allow it.

And now it appears all the Russians have withdrawn from here. Ukraine says it is now in full control of the entire region around Kyiv. But it is only now that the full extent of the civilian suffering is truly coming to light.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN: What we saw there in Bucha was obviously awful, but unfortunately, it's not something that is necessarily unique just to that one small town around the capital of Kyiv. In fact, just today we were in various other places, various other small towns and satellite towns around the Ukrainian capital, and every single one of them we saw the same scene.

We saw utter destruction, destroyed buildings where the local authorities said there's still dead people underneath, you know, dead bodies in the streets, dead bodies in backyards. And as the time progresses, as the Ukrainians make more and more inroads and access a lot more of these areas, unfortunately, they're probably going to find more of the same.

VAUSE: Now, in the wake of these allegations of war crimes, it seems the Kremlin is following a very similar playbook here, just outright deny the Russian military had anything to do with it. Try and create doubt and confusion. Here's CNN's (inaudible) Moscow bureau chief, Jill Dougherty.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: No one directly yet can prove that Russia did this, but there are calls from many countries for a real investigation of possible war crimes. And Russia knows that it looks at this point as if it happened while their troops were there. So what is Russia doing? I mean, they are calling it, number one, an egregious provocation by Ukrainian radicals.

And then they're also very quickly going on the offensive and saying that it's actually fake. That that video that we've been seeing on our screens is fake. And this is what Russian citizens are seeing in the Russian media, exactly that same message. That it is Ukrainians who are faking this. And in fact, that there is like a fake factory in a way for producing videos like this. This is all, of course, Russian propaganda for what they say is happening.

(END VIDEO CLIP) VAUSE: CNN's former Moscow bureau chief Jill Dougherty there. Let's bring in CNN's Nada Bashir. She is live this hour for us in London with more on the international reaction to these horrific

discoveries across Ukraine. And it seems that there is call now for action, a call to increase sanctions, more military support for Ukraine. What else do we know?

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER: Yes, absolutely, John. Over the weekend we've heard unified condemnation from western leaders, from the European Union, from NATO over these attacks that we have seen in Bucha. We have of course also heard calls for renewed sanctions and economic pressure on Russia, but really the response from European leaders across the continent has been unified in the outrage and shock at these horrific images that we've been seeing coming out of Bucha.

I can read you actually the statement from U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson over here. He said, "Russia's despicable attacks against innocent civilians in Irpin and Bucha are yet more evidence that Putin and his army are committing war crimes in Ukraine. No denial or disinformation from the Kremlin can hide what we all know to be the truth. Putin is desperate, his invasion is failing, and Ukraine's resolve has never been stronger."

And we have from NATO's Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. He said that we haven't seen this level of brutality in Europe in decades. The U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that these sorts of attacks, seeing these images is a punch to the gut, and that is a similar message we've heard from other European leaders. Take a listen to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OLAF SCHOLZ, GERMAN CHANCELLOR (through translation): I call on President Putin and Russia to finally agree to a ceasefire and stop the fighting. It is a terrible war, a senseless one. One that cannot be justified by anything. It is a war that is causing endless suffering and benefits no one. It must stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASHIR: Now, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has also said that he has established a mechanism of justice with numerous Ukrainian political institutions to investigate allegation of war crimes against the Kremlin. That has been something that we've heard from European leaders, from NATO leaders.

They have said that they will support these investigations. They are calling for urgent, independent investigation to be carried out at the earliest stage possible. And we've also heard that there will be renewed sanctions.

That is the message coming from the European Council. We've heard a similar message coming from other European leaders, in the U.K. and France and Germany.

[02:10:02] But we've also heard calls from President Zelenskyy for military support to Ukraine to be stepped up. This as we're hearing Russia are focusing its military efforts from the south and the east renewing its bombardment of those regions and President Zelenskyy urging for western allies to commit to supporting Ukraine on the military front.

But we did hear from U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken just over the weekend. He said that there would soon be 10 anti-tank weapon systems in Ukraine for every Russian tank on Ukrainian territory. So really an emphasis there on the support being provided to the Ukrainian armed forces by the U.S. and by other NATO allies. John?

VAUSE: Nada, thanks so much for that. Nada Bashir live for us in London with the very latest on the reaction around the world. Let's get now to Peter Zalmayev. He is a Ukrainian political analyst with the Eurasia Democracy Initiative. He is actually now joined the fight here against the Russians. But he joins us now.

So, Peter, thank you for taking the time to speak with us. We heard from the Ukrainian president. He described what is happening as genocide. This is also happening not just in Bucha but there have been similar discoveries across the northern part of Ukraine.

We also have this tweet from the foreign minister. "Bucha massacre was deliberate. Russians aim to eliminate as many Ukrainians as they can. We must stop them and kick them out." He demands new devastating G7 sanctions now, oil, gas, coal embargo, close all ports to Russian vessels and goods, disconnect all Russian banks from SWIFT.

So, what he's saying essentially is that there is room here to escalate those sanctions which area already in place on Russia. But sanctions don't stop tanks. Sanctions don't stop bullets, so what effect will they have?

PETER ZALMAYEV, DIRECTOR, EURASIA DEMOCRACY INITIATIVE: Well, if we are, you know, hoping to dissuade Putin from further outrage in Ukraine, then yes. I would say that this would be naive to hope this would happen. Sanctions are a blunt instrument and they long over, you know, they work over a long term. They are right (inaudible) sort of policy option. This is a way to punish Vladimir Putin, but once again, let's not be naive and think they will work overnight.

They will work eventually, though. They will catch up to Vladimir Putin. And, you know, what we're hearing from the Baltic States, Lithuania, and Latvia were saying they are willing to give up on all of Russian gas. This is very important. And we're hearing that Germany may be willing to step up their game.

Once again, no quick fix here, but this is an important policy tool as a way to, you know, to send a signal to Vladimir Putin. You know, you said it very correctly. This is a deliberate policy by Vladimir Putin to unleash terror against Ukrainians.

The British intelligence service has confirmed today that it was part of Vladimir Putin's plan from the beginning to, you know, to put more executions of civilians. We have seen this in Bucha. We have seen it throughout Ukraine in the occupied Kherson. The continued to disperse peaceful residents of that town who are protesting, who are coming out with Ukrainian flags. They are hitting them with smoke bombs, you know, even artillery fire. I mean, this is really the only thing that Russia has to --

VAUSE: Sir, we're at the point now where we're sort of entering what appears to be almost like a war of attrition, if you like. Does it sort of come down to both sides now inflicting as much pain as possible on the other side?

ZALMAYEV: I mean, it's, you know, it looks like it. Vladimir Putin is not about to be dissuaded from leaving Ukraine. We know that. They have retreated from Kyiv. They have retreated from Chernihiv simply because the reality on the ground has dictated. They have no gain left there. They have to regroup. They are demoralized, but it doesn't mean that he is desisting from his plans on Ukraine.

Today, we woke up to news that another round of shelling has just happened on the city of Odessa., The city of Chernobyl, which is in the western part of Ukraine was hit today. And once again, folks, you know, I'll just mention this one day, May 9th is coming up. It's a very important day in the Russian calendar. It's a day of victory over the Nazi Germany.

Vladimir Putin knows the importance of these dates. That is when the parade on the Red Square happens. He's going to have to show his people some kind of victory. So he's concentrating his forces now on the east, on the south. He's going to try to link up the Donbas or the Crimea, and for that he needs to knock out Mariupol. So, a lot of action is going to be happening in the eastern south of Ukraine.

VAUSE: At some point. Ukrainian forces have to mount (ph) some kind of counter offensive if they want to have any progress here. Is that even possible without military aid, which the west has recently promised, the tanks, the armored vehicles, the long-range artillery?

ZALMAYEV: Well, probably not. What we're hearing from the, you know, from the U.S. they might be willing to send Soviet era T-72 tanks. The Bucha massacre that we saw yesterday may help things along.

[02:15:003]

Ukraine needs to be -- to be enabled to close its own airspace so it needs surface-to-air missiles and air defenses such as S-300 to do that. And tanks are very important. Without that, Ukraine will not be able to, you know, to move from the defensive posture to actually starting to stage successful counter attacks.

VAUSE: The Ukrainian foreign minister has also warned there will likely be a lot more horrific scenes like the ones we've already seen, like the ones in Bucha. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DMYTRO KULEBA, UKRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: We should not forget about other towns and villages in the Kyiv region which also became the crime scene for Russian army. Without an exaggeration by what we've seen in Bucha and vicinity, we can conclude that Russia is worse than ISIS.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: So how long do you think it will be before the true extent of Russia's brutality is actually revealed here?

ZALMAYEV: The true extent shall have been revealed once the last Russian soldier leaves Ukraine's territory. I suspect there will be a lot of mass graves, a lot of evidence of rapes and other such outrage, so we will have to wait for that to happen in order to see that.

The criminal court in the Hague is working full throttle. Its uncovering lots of evidence and Human Rights Watch (inaudible) report saying that strong evidence that Russia has committed war crimes in Ukraine.

VAUSE: But then the question is who stands -- who's accountable for that? Who stands trial?

ZALMAYEV: Well, it's going to be (inaudible) the western leaders have already accused Vladimir Putin of being responsible --

VAUSE: I think we may have some --

ZALMAYEV: First today, the Pope in the Vatican has --

VAUSE: Peter Zalmayev and we might have to leave it there. Peter, if you can hear us we say thank you for that and we'll leave our interview there for now.

We will take a short break here on CNN. When we come back Moldova bringing aid to help with Ukrainian refugees. We'll have more details about a pledge from the United States of a much needed aid for that country. Also, Russia may be changing its strategy but that's no relief for parts of Ukraine. We'll have the latest on attacks in Mykolaiv.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:20:00]

VAUSE: Twenty minutes past the hour. Welcome back, everybody. Humanitarian groups are still trying to reach vulnerable civilians and get them out of harm's way. But continued Russian air strikes and other artillery fire are making that effort incredibly difficult.

Take a look at this drone footage which shows the havoc wreaked on the city of Mariupol by the Russian forces. Nearly 500 residents there escaped that devastation in their own vehicles on Sunday. The international Red Cross could not make it through. Ukrainians in the eastern city of (inaudible) also fleeing in search of safety, but some are sticking it out hoping to help those caught in the fighting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) VICTORIA VINNYK, TRAIN STATION VOLUNTEER AND DOCTOR (through

translation): The latest rumors that we hear, they are from official sources are that Russia is moving its troops to the east and we will be surrounded. It could turn into second Mariupol here. We hope the Ukrainian military forces will manage to hold their positions and that the west helps us a lot.

We Still hope that we can fight back and keep the defense long enough to win. I'm a doctor. I can't leave. Of course it's a little scary, but I don't want to leave my city. I'm needed here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Much needed financial assistance is on the way to the country of Moldova. The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations says the U.S. is pledging $50 million to assist with the influx of refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine. The funding will help support training and equipment for border management as well as efforts to counter human trafficking. CNN's Bianna Golodryga is traveling with -- in Moldova, rather, where she was born. She's also travelling with the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

LINDA THOMAS-GREENFIELD, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N: You know, I have been watching the news reports of refugees crossing borders into Poland, and as I looked at the map, Moldova is the smallest country. It's the poorest country, and per capita it's taking the most.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN SENIOR GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: It's a neutral country and it doesn't have the protection of the umbrella organizations like NATO, like even the E.U. They applied for rapid membership. Given all of that, given there are new threats coming from Ukrainian officials telling Moldovan officials that they think Russians may be eyeing Ukraine next, what more can the U.S. do and is willing to do to support this country not just financially but its own security?

THOMAS-GREENFIELD: You know, I will be meeting with the president and the prime minister later today and that will be part of the discussion I will have with them in terms of what else can we do to give you more confidence about your security, to address the problems that you might foresee in the future. And I will take that back to Washington and share it with other cabinet officials to see how we can better support them.

VAUSE: That was CNN's Bianna Golodryga with the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield. Well, the Russians may be redeploying and regrouping across this country, but the devastating attacks continue elsewhere on cities like Mykolaiv. Ukrainian officials there say on Sunday at least one person was killed, more than a dozen were hurt, taken to hospital because of Russian fire. CNN's Ben Wedeman has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The city of Mykolaiv came under multiple Russian missile strikes Sunday. The first one just after noon local time when what appears to be cluster munitions slammed into a residential neighborhood in the center of the city.

Shortly afterwards, Mykolaiv regional governor, Vitaliy Kim, put out a video of himself walking down the street saying the Russians were trying and failing to panic residents at a time when many people are beginning to return to their homes after having fled the city.

[02:25:03]

The Russian strikes killed one person and wounded more than a dozen according to a statement put out by the governor's office. Meanwhile, Ukrainian deputy prime minister, Iryna Vereschuk has accused Russian forces of detaining 11 mayors and killing one in areas under Russian control although CNN cannot independently verify those claims.

She said the Ukrainian government would alert the international committee of the Red Cross, the United Nations and other international organizations to their captivity. I'm Ben Wedeman, CNN, reporting from Mykolaiv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: A quick note here. If you would like to help the people of Ukraine, they're in need of shelter, food, water, medical supplies, pretty much everything, please go to cnn.com/impact and there, you'll find a safe and secure way to ensure that your generous donations gets to the people who need it the most.

Still to come here on CNN, Russian missiles hit an oil refinery and fuel depot in Odessa. We'll have the very latest from the scene just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:29:56]

VAUSE: Welcome back to our viewers in the United States and around the world. Just on 29 minutes past the hour. I'm John Vause live in Lviv, Ukraine, and this is "CNN Newsroom" and we're following a horrific discovery in Bucha and other cities and towns around Ukraine as Russian troops --

[02:30:00]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: -- pass the hour. I'm John Vause Lviv, Ukraine. And this is CNN NEWSROOM. And we are following and horrific discovery in Bucha and other cities and towns around Ukraine. As Russian troops retreat from this area around Kiev, the capital, they're leaving behind evidence of what appears to be a massacre. A warning the images you're about to see a graphic. This is a mass grave site. Up to 300 people could be buried there. That's according to the town's mayor. The President of Ukraine is accusing Russia of genocide. Russia, though we'd like you to believe this is all staged and has denied any involvement, in fact, putting the blame on the radical Ukrainians. But a CNN crew saw all of this with their own eyes. At least a dozen bodies piled up here on church grounds.

We're also getting a closer look at some of the vast destruction left behind by Russia in the city of Irpin. And what you will hear next, residents lashing out at Russia's invasion of their city.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): They are just destroying people and houses. I want to know why they are targeting this residential area. People are being torn to pieces.

They are shelling and shelling. Those are Russian shells, Putin's shells.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Earlier I spoke with CNN Military Analyst Colonel Cedric Leighton. I asked him if the atrocities we are now seeing across this country are straight from Vladimir Putin's playbook. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CEDRIC LEIGHTON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: The Russians in the past have done these kinds of things, in many of the words they fought in the last 100 years. So, they come with this reputation. They've done very little if anything to mitigate it. You know, you can go back to World War II, you can go back to what happened in Chechnya. And you can go back to some of the things that happened in Georgia and of course in the Donbas region in 2014.

And they have done things like this many, many times. A -- basically what happens is they lose control of their -- of their army. It's a very centralized army until the call for withdrawal happens. And then the soldiers are given free rein to do whatever they want to in terms of looting, killing, pillaging, raping, all of those terrible things.

And that is precisely what I think we're seeing in Bucha and in several other cities and towns throughout the region around Kiev. So, it is unfortunately a hallmark of the Russian military and it is not going away at all.

VAUSE: Zelenskyy went on to say that he now expects those areas where the Russians have left, they will still be targeted with airstrikes and artillery fire. And also he points out that when the Russians were withdrawing, they left the region heavily mined. Bodies were left with mines on the buildings and roads were mined. What is the point in that? Is this just a scorched earth policy?

LEIGHTON: It is very much a scorched earth policy, John. It is designed to terrorize the civilian population and make it extremely difficult for the Ukrainian forces to come in and take over a certain controller with the land of no of course the population is certainly in favor of the Ukrainian forces coming back in. But mines and booby traps are going to be a severe hindrance on the Ukrainians path to reclaiming their land. And it is very much a -- in the aspect of Russian warfare and it's a very dangerous and deadly one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Colonel -- CNN Military Analyst Colonel Cedric Leighton speaking just a short time ago. Well, in the port city of Odessa, Russia fired a series of missiles destroying an oil refinery and fuel depo. The attack happened during the early hours of Sunday morning. And CNN's Ed Lavandera was there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ED LAVANDERA, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The missiles exploded in a startling violent barrage, about six strikes lit up the sky. Russian Military officials say the attack on Odessa was launched from the sea and land using high-precision missiles.

The massive plumes of black swirling smoke covered much of the city of one million people. The strikes landed in a largely industrial area, destroying an oil refinery and fuel storage facilities.

LAVANDERA(on camera): Multiple airstrikes hit the port city of Odessa here in southern Ukraine just before sunrise Sunday morning. There were no air raid sirens that went off before the blast and the explosions could be felt and seen from miles away.

LAVANDERA (voice over): Ukrainian officials say there were no injuries but Tatiana Gerasim says the explosive threw her from the chair she was sleeping in and window glass shattered all over her.

[02:35:07]

LAVANDERA: Tatiana volunteers in this building late into the night cooking meals for Ukrainian soldiers. In recent days, she says reconnaissance drones were flying over the fuel storage facility. Two other residents told us they saw the drones as well.

TATIANA GERASIM, ODESSA RESIDENT (through translator): The drones were flying around and they know they were up to something and could bomb the depot. And we've been thinking where we could hide in case something happens.

LAVANDERA: A small pocket of apartment buildings and homes sit just across the street from the bombing site. Families stood outside their homes under the clouds of dark smoke. Watching flames shoot up into the air. The explosions shattered windows and any remaining sense of security these residents had left.

GERASIM: Of course, I'm scared and now they're hitting everywhere. They're doing it in all cities. We know it, we see it. LAVANDERA: The attack on Odessa follows a similar pattern Russian forces have carried out for weeks hitting fuel storage facilities across the country it claims are supplying their Ukrainian military. But if the Odessa strike is a precise attack, Ukrainian officials say the strikes hours later in the neighboring city of Mykolaiv have no rhyme or reason and are designed to harass and panic civilians.

Despite being this close to the bombing and with tears in her eyes, Tatiana harassing says she refuses to leave Ukraine. She tells me these bastards won't get away with it.

Ed Lavandera CNN, Odessa, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Ukrainian officials accused Russian forces of now holding more than 11 mayors captive and committing a war crime by killing one was in captivity. CNN has not independently verified these allegations. But here's what the deputy prime minister had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

IRYNA VERESHCHUK, UKRAINIAN DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER (through translator): At the moment, 11, local mayors from Kiev, Kherson, Mykolayiv and the Donetsk region are in Russian captivity. We informed the International Red Cross committee, the U.N. and other organizations about their captivity. And we urge all those who can and we demand that all those who can do everything to make sure that our civilians, our mayors, priests, journalists and activists are liberated.

They are held illegally by force and they have the right to be fought for. We are doing this and we urge others to do the same.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: A Lithuanian filmmaker has been killed here in Ukraine. He was 45 years old. According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, he was killed by Russian soldiers while trying to leave the besieged city of Mariupol. His film Mariupolis premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival back in 2016. He won the Amnesty International Film prize in 2011 for his documentary about Russia's war in Chechnya.

Let's go back to Rosemary Church standing by in Atlanta with some more of the day's news and the, you know, the number of journalists and, you know, documentary makers who died in this conflict just keeps going up each day, it seems.

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Yes. That is totally unacceptable. Thank you, my friend. We will come back to you at the top of the hour. Many thanks. Well, Shanghai hopes more COVID testing will help curb the rise of new cases across the city. We will have the latest in a live report just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:42:23]

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, Chinese officials are holding firm to the country's zero COVID policy as cases skyrocket throughout the region. Residents of Shanghai have been ordered to complete another round of COVID testing after a weekend of rising cases. The city reported more than 9000 new infections on Sunday. The highest daily count to date. And CNN's Selina Wang joins me now from Tokyo with more on all of this. Good to see you, Selina.

So, record high infections in Shanghai. What is the latest on the outbreak, the lockdown and of course extensive COVID testing that's been done?

SELINA WANG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Rosemary, great to be with you. And as we see these COVID cases continue to rise in Shanghai, the public there are growing more and more frustrated. You have a record-high number of cases there and you have 10,000 medical workers from across China being sent there to help support the medical system. This is as all of Shanghai's 25 million residents are owing, yet again undergoing these rounds and rounds of mass testing.

It is hard to overstate the scale of this mass lockdown. Shanghai is China's most populous city. It is the financial economic hub. And the authorities there have tried to contain this outbreak in this phase walked out. So, the eastern half of the city has been in lockdown for about a week --many places. The western half of Shanghai went into lockdown on Friday. But important to note here, Rosemary that for many of these residents, it's not just been a matter of days that they've been stuck in their homes.

It's been weeks for many of them and they are indefinitely stuck in there until their entire neighborhood tests negative for COVID-19. And that is because many of these neighborhoods have been already doing these targeted lockdowns for weeks before the city wide lockdown went into effect. There are even residents who are sleeping at work. The freight section of one of the Shanghai's airports there more than 7000 staff members have been living in the airport for more than a week now.

So China's sticking to its strict zero COVID policies but it is taking a toll on the economy, on its financial institutions and of course, on people's lives. People continuing to complain about the struggle to get daily necessities, food and even medical care.

CHURCH: All right. Selina Wang bringing us up to date from her vantage point there in Tokyo. Many thanks. Well, Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam says she will not seek reelection. She made the announcement the day after the nomination period opened. She says the decision is driven by family considerations. Lam has held the position for almost five years. Her tenure has been marred by massive pro- democracy protests and China's heavy handed response.

[02:45:08]

CHURCH: Hong Kong's controversial National Security Law and unrelenting COVID-19 restrictions. Well, Hungarian leader Viktor Orban celebrated a landslide reelection

on Sunday with a jab at European leaders. The right-wing prime minister and Putin allies secured a fourth consecutive term after his party won a super majority in Parliament. Mr. Orban said European bureaucrats and Ukraine's president with some of the many opponents he overcame at the polls. He has drawn heavy criticism particularly from Europe and the West over the erosion of Democratic rights during his time in office.

Will in the coming hours, Pakistan's Supreme Court is expected to weigh in on the country's political upheaval. Prime Minister Imran Khan dissolve Parliament on Sunday and call for fresh elections. The move came after the deputy speaker blocked a vote of no confidence in the Prime Minister which she was widely expected to lose. Opposition lawmakers protested and called on the Supreme Court to uphold the constitution.

Pakistan's president says Mr. Khan will stay on the job until a new caretaker prime minister can be appointed.

Well, back here in the United States. President Joe Biden has asked for Congress to renew talks on gun control after a fatal shooting in California. Residents of Sacramento awoke Sunday to the news that 18 people had been shot. Six of them killed and police say multiple shooters may have opened fire. President Biden wants Congress to put stricter barriers in place to ban certain weapons, required background checks for gun purchases and more.

In a statement, the president said families have been forever changed. And he said, "We must do more than more than we must act."

Refugees from Ukraine are pouring into neighboring countries, but some are finding safe haven on the other side of the Atlantic. We report on one family's Florida reunion coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:41:10]

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, as families flee Ukraine, some are finding refuge in places they never imagined. CNN's Randi Kaye reports from outside Miami, Florida.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IRYNA TIMOSHENKO, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE: I realized that something happened because when at 5:30 maybe a.m. the neighbors, they called me and asked (INAUDIBLE) heard something, what --

RANDI KAYE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Iryna Timoshenko was on a business trip last month in Lviv, Ukraine near the Polish border when Russia started bombing her country. Her husband and their three children were hundreds of miles away at the family's home outside Kyiv.

TIMOSHENKO: I just asked my husband to bring the kids to me. KAYE (voice-over): Iryna and her husband Oleksandr devised a plan, he would drive them through the night about seven hours one way to meet her in Lviv.

(on-camera): So as your husband drove toward Lviv, you were able to track him on your phone?

TIMOSHENKO: In WhatsApp, it's the one option, share your location. And I can online check where he is. Because, you know, it was like a hardest hours when you realize that all your family, your husband and your kids driving, and it can bomb in and it can be anything.

KAYE (voice-over): When the family reunited, Iryna thought her husband wasn't able to cross the border since men of a certain age were being told to stay and help defend Ukraine. So, Iryna and her kids ages three, seven and nine, boarded a train to Poland. Meanwhile, around the same time, half a world away this man Philip Bradford was watching the Russian siege on T.V. at his Florida home.

Philip's mother was Croatian and his wife stepmother was from Ukraine. So, he felt the urge to help.

PHILIP BRADFORD, OPENED HOME TO TIMOSHENKO FAMILY: I heard my wife and my mother and my stepmother-in-law, my mother-in-law telling me get off of (INAUDIBLE) which is rear end and go do something.

KAYE (voice-over): Just a few minutes away from Philip's home in Cooper city is St. Nicholas Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

BRADFORD: I went to the church. And I gave them a couple of $100 thinking I've done my good deed, like a boy scout might. And I said if I can help more, let me know and everything --

KAYE (voice-over): Turns out there was more, a lot more. Iryna had made her way to Miami with her kids. She'd visited that same Ukrainian church last year. So, when she went back and shared her struggle, a church volunteer called on Philip to help.

BRADFORD: I was told about this mother with three children from Ukraine.

TIMOSHENKO: And so yes, I want to help. I have the big house. I want to give you the place to stay for your kids. You have the separate room for all of them.

KAYE (voice-over): Philip's wife has been in a nursing home for the last four years. So, he's been living alone. Not anymore, Iryna and her kids moved right in.

BRADFORD: I'm almost 80, so it's like having grandkids running around again.

KAYE (on-camera): How do you feel about a stranger opening up his home to your family?

TIMOSHENKO: You know, I was shocked. And now we are like, one family all together.

KAYE (voice-over): Philip even insisted Iryna take the kids to Disney World. His treat.

(on-camera): You sent them to Disney?

BRADFORD: Oh, she told you about that.

KAYE (on-camera): We know all your secrets.

BRADFORD: That's what grandfathers do I guess.

KAYE (voice-over): Meanwhile, soon after Iryna left Ukraine, she found out men who had three or more children were allowed to leave the country. So a few days ago, this happened.

Upon his arrival is a gesture of thanks, Iryna's husband who will also live with Philip brought him this bracelet in the same colors as the Ukrainian flag.

(on-camera): What does that bracelet mean to you?

[02:55:06]

BRADFORD: Well, it kind of makes me one of them in a sense. Yes.

KAYE (on-camera): Funded (ph).

BRADFORD: Yes. Right.

KAYE (voice-over): Randi Kaye, CNN, Cooper City, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Love that story. Well, the Grammy Awards on Sunday featured a special guest. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy who appeared in a pre taped message. The president appealed to the international community for help sharing the truth of what is happening in Ukraine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Our musicians wear body armor, instead of tuxedo. They sing to the wounded. In hospitals, even to those who can't hear them, but the music will break through anyway. We defend our freedom to live, to love, to sound. On our land, we are fighting Russia, which brings horrible silence with its bombs. The dead silence. Feel the silence with your music. Fill it today to tell our story.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH (voice over): Following the President's message, John Legend joined Ukrainian performers and musicians performing his new song title Free. Celebrating the power of music in dark times, especially war. And thank you so much for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. John Vause will be live from Lviv with more of our coverage on Russia's war in Ukraine. That's after a short break. Do stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:00:00]