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Some Citizens In War-Ravished Mariupol Finally Get A Chance To Leave; EU Energy Ministers Hold Emergency Talks; Israel Condemns Russian Claims About Hitler's Jewish Blood; UEFA Bans Russian Clubs, National Teams "Until Further Notice; Workers Struggle To Keep Up With Burials Of Mariupol Dead; Israel Condemns Russian Claims About Hitler's "Jewish Blood". Aired 2-3p ET
Aired May 02, 2022 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:00]
BIANCA NOBILO, CNN HOST: Hello everyone, I am Bianca Nobilo and you're watching CNN NEWSROOM live from London. Tonight, some citizens in war-ravished Mariupol are finally getting a chance to leave. But the city's mayor says conditions are difficult. We'll have the latest. Then EU Energy Ministers meet for crisis talks on how to limit their reliance on Russian gas. But what progress will be made?
And later, Russia's Foreign Minister sparks international outrage as he claims Adolf Hitler had Jewish blood. We'll have more on the backlash. A lifeline for those on the frontline. We begin in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol and the painstaking efforts to get civilians to safety. Mariupol's mayor says Russia has been creating obstacles to make evacuations difficult after officials there reported very slow progress.
The destination for many is the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia, but Moscow says some are choosing to head to Russian-held territory instead. We'll be live in Zaporizhzhia in a few moments. Today's evacuees do not include those who have been trapped in the Azovstal Steel plant. Around 100 women and children were able to leave on Sunday, they described the horror that they faced.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): The shelling was so strong, and they kept hitting near us. At the exit of the bomb shelter, on the top few steps, one couldn't breathe as though there was not enough oxygen. I was afraid to even walk out and breathe some fresh air.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We lived in the basement, starting from the 27th of February. We didn't leave because our house is in close proximity to Azovstal, the whole time we were shelled with mines, and then airstrike started. Our house was completely destroyed. We had a two-story building, it's not there anymore. It burned to the ground.
(END VIDEO CLIP) NOBILO: What followed those evacuations was a turbulent night at the
steel plant according to a Ukrainian commander. These satellite images show how the plant has been decimated by Russian shelling over the past months. Elsewhere, Ukraine says Russia is pressing forward with its offensive in Donetsk with its sight set on the key town of Sloviansk.
This as Russia says two explosions hit its Belgorod region, which borders on Ukraine. No casualties were reported from that. Matt Rivers is in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv with more. Matt, what are you hearing about these attempted evacuations from Mariupol?
MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they are ongoing, Bianca. And that is the first good news that we've had out of that city in weeks. Now, as it's going and the kind of pace and scale that Ukrainian officials had want? No. There are two separate evacuation operations ongoing. One for generally, broadly speaking, Mariupol, the areas under Russian control. The other hand you had this Azovstal Steel plant where dozens of people were able to make it out over the weekend, but it's unclear if any are getting out today.
Civilians aside though, I think it's important to remember or to at least consider the fate of the soldiers that also remain inside that steel plant. And questions about what will happen to them. And the questions is, will they eventually surrender to Russian soldiers, though? I think the answer is no, especially considering the story we're about to play you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RIVERS (voice-over): Russian propaganda with a clear message to the last remaining defenders of Mariupol.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
RIVERS: The video says, "we guarantee that we will save your lives and we will follow international laws to guarantee humane treatment. Such will be the case", says the voice-over, with this man, a captured Ukrainian soldier Dan Zvonyk. The 25-year-old member of Ukraine's territorial defense force was captured at the Azovstal Steel complex, the last remaining pocket of resistance in the city. CNN has geo- located the building behind them to an area just northwest of the plant.
A Russian soldier detailing how they'll be treated. "As you are captured", he says, "we will treat you with honor and with understanding." These videos were published on April 20th. Five days later, Dan Zvonyk was dead. This picture of his face hauntingly lifeless was sent to his mother by officials in Russian-held Donetsk, she told us. We redialed the numbers and were hung up on once we're identified as journalists.
To confirm who he was, they also sent a picture of his chest with a tattoo on the body clearly matching the one seen on Zvonyk when he was still alive in Russian propaganda videos.
[14:05:00]
(on camera): When you first saw that message, what went through your mind?
ANNA ZVONYK, MOTHER OF KILLED UKRAINIAN POW (through translator): Nothing. I just screamed. There was nothing. No thoughts.
RIVERS (voice-over): We met his mother near where she is staying in Kyiv. She fled Mariupol herself just two weeks ago alongside the rest of her family. Her sister-in-law also reeling from the photo of her nephew.
LUDMILA ZAGURSKA, AUNT OF KILLED UKRAINIAN POW (through translator): I still have the photograph in front of my eyes. It's constantly in front of my eyes.
RIVERS: A morgue in Donetsk confirmed to CNN that Zvonyk was dead, and that his body was picked up on Sunday. His family says there was a large wound in the back of his head. CNN can't confirm how he died, but we know he died after being taken into custody either by Russian or Russian-backed separatist forces.
(on camera): Do you think that the Russians killed your son?
ZVONYK: Yes, I'm sure.
RIVERS (voice-over): Russia's Ministry of Defense did not return a request for comment about how Zvonyk died. For weeks, CNN has heard directly from soldiers inside the steel plant complex who have told us they will not surrender to the Russians for fear of being executed. Within their ranks, Zvonyk death only hardened that sentiment.
(on camera): Does what happened to him only reinforce the notion that the soldiers that are there are not going to surrender to the Russians?
GEORGE KUPARASHVLLI, DEPUTY COMMANDER, AZOV REGIMENT: Matt, don't you think it confirms their fear, and actually expectations, what Russia did today? This is a -- this is a war crime.
RIVERS (voice-over): We asked Zvonyk's mother, Anna, if she is angry with the Russians. Her answer, honest and gutting.
ZVONYK: For now, I only feel innermost pain, pain and emptiness. But that's it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RIVERS: And Dan Zvonyk's father was also inside that Azovstal Steel plant as a fighter, and the family had not heard from him since the middle of March. But through our contacts in the steel plant, we managed to confirm that Zvonyk's father is still alive, Zvonyk's father is now back in touch with the family for the first time since mid-March, which is good news. But our contacts also did have to break the news to him that his son had been killed or at least they chose to break that news to him. And the father's fate is very much up in the air, Bianca, because who
knows what will happen to him in the days, weeks, months ahead.
NOBILO: And more civilians whose fate are up near -- obviously, those in the east as they battle -- as the Ukrainian troops battle against this Russian offensive. Can you tell us about the latest on that Russian push.
RIVERS: Well, it's incremental progress that the Russians are making as they pushed down from the north, up from the south and in from the east to try and take over in its entirety the Donbas region and the eastern part of the country. But it is very clear that Ukraine is putting up a very stiff resistance. Basically what you're seeing at the same time is Russia is taking few towns, few settlements here and there.
Ukrainians are actually taking back certain settlements around Kharkiv for example. So there are counter offensives at play here at the same time. So there is no area of that fight in the east where Russia is making clear, substantial gains. And interestingly, according to the British Intelligence latest report, of all of the troops that Russia first committed at the beginning of this war, which according to the British, was up to about 65 percent of their combat troops.
A quarter of those units called the Battalion Tactical Groups are now basically not ready for combat, ineffective on a combat level, according to British Intelligence. And some of the units with the highest levels of attrition are actually some of Russia's top units, including some of its airborne troops. So things clearly not going well for Russia, that's been a theme from the beginning of this war. They have fixed some of their logistical issues, it seems. But they are not making any substantial progress in the east, as it were right now.
NOBILO: Matt Rivers in Kyiv, Ukraine, for us, thank you so much. And we will get more into the military strategy in what's happening there in the east with our military analyst a little later in the program. But let's go now live to Zaporizhzhia where civilians are heading after enduring weeks of devastation in Mariupol. Nick Paton Walsh is there for us. Nick, what is the status of the evacuees? Were you expecting to see that when they arrive?
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR: Yes, I mean, obviously, the U.N. and Red Cross-escorted convoy had been expected today -- I think there obviously been some caveats attached to that. This is not a simple operation, far from it. But it does appear that it is not due any time imminently. It may be overnight, it may be tomorrow morning.
We're getting suggestions from Ukrainian officials it's clear that, that convoy is on the move, it does appear to possibly hold about a 100 people who may be mostly from the Azovstal Steel plant as you can probably imagine. A complex picture, and this is of course, possibly the first of many that the U.N. and Red Cross hope to begin to get coming out of Mariupol.
[14:10:00]
But as far as I understand from Ukrainian officials, they may have stopped overnight or be certainly moving through the towns that are still Russian-held outside of Mariupol rather than getting to here, Zaporizhzhia, Ukrainian-held territory. Where we were at evacuation welcome center, where we saw still a slow-drip of people who over the previous days under their own auspices had managed to get out of Mariupol or some of the villages or regions that surround it.
Remember, this whole area is under Russian onslaught. So people coming in having fled their homes, looking for some kind of new life, displaced in this conflict. But that is not the same as this broadly, United Nations and Red Cross effort. As I say, the hope is that if the Azovstal people can get out, the hundreds underground there, the startling images of the rescue we've been seeing over the past 24 hours, and maybe some of the injured Ukrainian soldiers who are seemed to be trapped under that Azovstal Steel plant as well.
Then that might possibly begin to allow larger volumes of civilians to come out through that United Nations route. But lots of trust missing on both sides. Frankly, lots of decency missing from the Russian military that this has got to this late stage before a humanitarian corridor of that nature has been permitted. But expectation and a degree of hope today, somewhat delayed by the fact that these evacuees haven't arrived yet. Bianca?
NOBILO: Nick Paton Walsh for us in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, thank you so much, and we'll be checking back in with you later today and tomorrow, and hopefully, some of that hope will materialize. Thanks. The EU Energy Ministers are holding crisis talks in Brussels, trying to come up with a unified response after Russia turned off its gas supply to Poland and Bulgaria last week.
Moscow wants energy payments in rubles to get around sanctions. A demand that was unilaterally rejected. The bloc is trying to rapidly reduce its reliance on Russian gas. German Finance Minister spoke to CNN earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTIAN LINDNER, FINANCE MINISTER, GERMANY: Now we are ready, we have prepared ourselves to be less dependent on Russian energy imports. It takes time to reduce the dependency. It was a mistake to be dependent in this way. But we are making progress. We can reduce the imports, starting with coal, then oil. It will take more time to be independent from Russian natural gas imports. But we will continue. So, in the end, we will be completely independent from Russia.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NOBILO: So how close is the EU to an embargo on Russian oil? Joining me now to discuss is CNN correspondent Clare Sebastian. Clare, great to talk to you. That is the question really, especially if Germany is more on board. We're hearing that kind of language from them. Does that mean that we are getting closer? CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, in a word, it does. I mean,
I think it could be a matter of weeks, perhaps, even days. We're hearing others coming on board too. Austria, their energy minister just tweeted that if the EU wants an oil embargo, Austria will be willing to join. The other striking thing about this is that, a lot of the work has already been done. Germany has reduced its reliance on Russian oil from 35 percent before the war started to 12 percent now.
The Austrian energy minister tweeted they didn't import any Russian oil in March, that was actually news to me. So, a lot of this work has been done. They have been moving towards this. But the problem is, there are still hold outs. There isn't yet, as far as we know, unity on this issue. Hungary, for example has said, that they just can't do it. He said -- the foreign minister said it's a matter of physics. This isn't for fun.
He said on our air recently, they just cannot stop imports from Russia. So, one of the potential options, according to the reports is that, they do carve out for the likes of Hungary, maybe also Slovakia, which is heavily reliant on Russian energy. Maybe a slower transition out of this. We do expect it, anyway, to be a phased transition. The German finance minister didn't want to speculate on that interview.
But we are definitely moving closer, Germany is the biggest player if they say they're willing, I think we've got serious momentum here.
NOBILO: And now we saw Poland and Bulgaria get cut off as we were mentioning in the lead in there. What are the plans in place for Europe to deal with that if before the Russian reliance on gas -- their reliance on Russian gas can be eradicated? There are more unilateral cut offs from Russia?
SEBASTIAN: Yes, i think this is -- this is the issue. It was interesting to hear because obviously, there's been a lot of discussion around does it or does it not violate sanctions to use this mechanism that Russia has put forward and essentially pay them in rubles. The EU is sticking with its line here. Energy commissioner said today that it would be a violation of sanctions.
Now, this is, obviously, an urgent situation. She said that more payments from EU energy companies that come in June and mid-May, they need more clarity. The EU says it's going to provide it. In the meantime, they have to try to figure out how they're going to live without Russian gas because It could be cut off. This was a warning shot, so they need alternative suppliers, they need, you know, new LNG infrastructure.
[14:15:00]
They need things like gas storage to be ramped up ahead of Winter. And crucially, Bianca, it's going to be a demand reduction. Because you just cannot replace Russian gas. There isn't capacity in the market to replace all of it. So, they are going to need to come back on demand as well.
NOBILO: And given how, you know, financially paying for this will be for Europeans. You remind me earlier, it's important to recognize the pain that this will actually cause Russia and the kind of leverage they might be able to exert. So tell our viewers about that. What are Europeans getting in return for facing all of these challenges?
SEBASTIAN: Yes, so the interesting thing, because the reason why Europe wants to do oil before gas is because it's actually easier for Europe to wean itself off Russian oil than gas. There's just far fewer --
NOBILO: Yes --
SEBASTIAN: Alternative suppliers, supply routes, things like that. Oil is more painful for Russia, interestingly. They make In terms of revenues, two to three times from oil what they make from gas. This is really hitting them where it hurts. Oil and gas together last year made up 45 percent of Russia's federal budget. So, that is -- it's clearly one of the biggest ways that they have been propping up their war-chest.
The other thing is that, finding alternative buyers to sort of making that money elsewhere, it's just not that easy, you'd have to rebuild the pipelines to get the oil and gas to different countries. Yes, India has been buying some Russian oil, they're having to sell it at a discount for India to buy it. But ultimately, turning this ship around, Russia is sort of shifting its economy to other customers, it's just going to take a long time. So this really would hit them where it hurts.
NOBILO: Clare Sebastian, thank you so much for joining us. Still to come tonight, a city that was a major flash point during the war in Donbas in 2014, looks like to become a crucial battleground again. We'll discuss. Plus, we hear from the workers tasked with burying Mariupol's dead, they're describing the heartbreaking job that these days never seems to end.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NOBILO: Ukraine's military says Russian forces are pressing an offensive in the direction of Sloviansk. It's a city in the Donetsk region of the eastern part of the country. And whoever controls it gets a major strategic advantage. Should Russian forces overrun Sloviansk, they would cut off Ukraine's forces in the wider region. But if they're held back by the Ukrainian side, Russia would have a much harder time controlling both the Luhansk and Donetsk regions.
So, I want to bring in CNN's military analyst Lieutenant General Mark Hertling. General Hertling, always great to speak to you. Thank you for joining the program.
MARK HERTLING, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Great to be with you, Bianca. Thank you.
NOBILO: So, could you just flush that out a little bit. What we were saying about Sloviansk and its strategic importance and what it would mean for both sides.
[14:20:00]
HERTLING: The whole pocket in that area, Bianca, is critically important. It's not just the city of Sloviansk, there's much smaller towns around Sloviansk. But it's the connection between that city and Izium as well. We're talking about the desire to achieve objectives that give control over terrain-featured cities, crossing over the Donetsk river, those are all the things that are critically important.
And what we've seen so far is that Russia has put the majority of their forces in the northern part of this zone. You know, at one point, they wanted to achieve a dual pincer action, an envelopment, if you will, on both the north and the south. Russia has had extreme difficulties in Mariupol. They're having a challenge to get out of that town to conduct that siege, and then they've used more forces in there than they anticipated.
So, the pincer movement from the south is not occurring very well. But in the north, there has been a back and forth between the Ukrainian and the Russian forces. Every time Russia has started an attack with a lot of artillery barrages and artillery strikes, and then pulled that off and then pushed a small reconnaissance in force elements from the Russian force tanks and infantry into the sector, they've gained some ground, but then immediately have been pushed back by the Ukrainian forces in the north.
So, this will be a back-and-forth battle to prevent that. And in addition to that, since you have the map up, we'll go a little bit further north near Kharkiv, and the Ukrainians, excuse me, have been pushing back forces in that area. You can't just look at this as red splashes on a map, you have to consider the roads, the railroads, the rivers that are in this terrain, and what you have to overcome. The Ukrainians have been doing a very good job in using the natural obstacles to their advantage.
NOBILO: And you touched on the southern pincer movement, which as you said isn't going as well as the Russians would want to. Earlier in our program, General, we were talking a lot about Mariupol and the attempted evacuations from there. What is the significance of Mariupol in regards to southern pincer movement and also just the eastern offensive in general?
HERTLING: You know, six months from now, a year from now, Bianca, historians and military experts are going to look back at the battle for Mariupol, and they are going to say that was a critical event. The ability for Ukraine's forces to keep the Azovstal fuel -- Steel plant under their control for so long, for almost two months, it's tied up Russian forces. You know, for historians, it would be like going back to the Battle of the Bulge, the Battle in Bastogne during World War II, where German forces were tied up for a very long time.
Because the Russian forces could not bypass that city, they were concerned about having Ukrainians in their rear area and harassing their supply lines. They had to commit more than three times the amount of forces that they wanted to in Mariupol, and that prevented them from going both north and to the west into other sectors. So, you know, the grand operational art of this entire campaign has been fascinating to watch.
The critical piece, the unfortunate piece, is Russia has used Ukrainian citizens as targets and as -- unfortunately, as terror attempts to control some of these areas. And that's what's really been unfortunate in this entire campaign.
NOBILO: So, it seems also that the Russians are able to make some gains at the moment in the east, with just huge amounts of artillery. But they are struggling to consolidate because of not having enough troops or tanks. And one of our correspondents earlier in the program was saying that British military Intelligence was estimating that one quarter of the battalion tactical groups were actually not operational for the Russians.
So what would you expect to see in the next week of this eastern offensive, given those circumstances?
HERTLING: Well, truthfully, what's been fascinating to me, Bianca, is the fact that they haven't used more artillery. I was anticipating a large mass of Russian artillery across the entire front. They have not massed their artillery as I thought they would. You know, when we saw early pictures of their convoys move in those areas, we saw nothing but Grad systems and artillery pieces moving into the battle.
If they can't get the artillery advantage, which I don't think they have thus far, then it's very difficult to maneuver the ground forces, that the tanks, the infantry, and the bridging assets. You know, we sometimes tend to forget about the engineers who have to cross some of the rivers that are in these areas. So, that combined arms approach has not been effective on the part of Russia.
[14:25:00]
And in addition to that, Ukraine is piece-mealing their activity by attacking and harassing their columns. So, it continues to be an attempted artillery battle, and the Russians are having -- still having difficult times with resupplying their forces. And their maneuver, their leadership and their maneuver plans has been somewhat dysfunctional in various areas. They have been held back by the Ukrainian forces in my view.
NOBILO: And given the issues with leadership, command and control, like you said, perhaps, a curious decision to not use more artillery. Do you think that the speed of adaptation of the Russians is quickening compared to the earlier stages of the war?
HERTLING: No, I don't. I think it's been horrific. They've attempted to put some leadership at the front line, senior leadership, general officers, to try and get some of those adaptations. But truthfully, Bianca, as many of us have said from the very beginning, there is such dysfunction in the Russian military, from the standpoint of unit level leadership, and the fact that they have not trained on the kind of operations they're attempting to conduct through exercises and training events. And in addition to that, because they haven't been able to execute
their resupply operations, that's affected them. But you go one step further, you know, it's very difficult to understand how challenging it is to regenerate a force that's been mauled in combat. And the Russian force was mauled in combat north of Kyiv. You can't just say, OK, well, who is left? And let's put a couple of units together and let's have them fight on.
The psychological and physical factors involved in that are just unbelievably difficult to overcome. In my view, they have not done that. When you were talking about the U.K. visioning that a quarter of their forces have been affected and non-combat capable, that's a big part of the force.
NOBILO: General Mark Hertling, thank you so much for joining us. We always appreciate your thoughts and insights. Russian troops stole $5 million worth of farm equipment from a dealership in Melitopol, Ukraine according to a Ukrainian businessman. They sent it all to Chechnya, more than a 1,000 kilometers away, only to find it had been locked remotely.
There's a growing number of reports of Russian troops stealing from equipment, grain, building materials, on top of looting people's homes. But this particular theft speaks to an increasingly organized operation, one that even uses military transport. A U.S. congressional delegation led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has just wrapped up a trip to Ukraine and Poland. Today, Pelosi met with Polish President Andrzej Duda and lawmakers to discuss their country's commitment to pursuing peace in Ukraine.
On Saturday, the U.S. delegation made an unannounced visit to Kyiv, making Pelosi the most senior U.S. official to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy since the Russian invasion. And still to come tonight, unforgivable and outrageous. A furious Israel responds to controversial comments from Russia's foreign minister.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:30:00]
NOBILO: Russian national teams and clubs are banned from European football competition until further notice. That's the word from UEFA, European's -- European football's governing body. Now let's get more on this from World Sports, Don Riddell. Don, what are the immediate impacts of this move?
Don Riddell, CNN WORLD SPORT: Hey, Bianca. Well, I think the first thing you're going to notice is that the European Summer Championships or the Women's Tournament is going to be played in England this summer is not going to feature Russia. Russia qualified by beating Portugal in a playoff last year. The tournament was actually delayed because of COVID. Russia, their team will not be there. Portugal will take their place instead. So that is the most immediate thing that you're going to notice.
But this is going to impact the national team, and club teams from Russia as well. So for example, the men's team, they were already suspended from competing in the nation's league, that is going to continue so they are effectively going to finish the bottom of their group, and they will be relegated next year, the Champions League, the Europa League, the Europa conference League, no Russian teams will be able to compete in those tournaments either.
It's going to be very difficult for the Russian women to now qualify for the World Cup because they can't play in those qualifying matches. So, this is going to impact Russian football right across the board.
NOBILO: And Don, UEFA said that Russia's bids for two future European Championships are invalid. So is there a path back for Russia to get into the World Football's good graces again?
RIDDELL: I think it's far too soon to even be talking about that. I mean, regarding these tournaments, you're talking about the 2028 and 2032 European football championships. Russia expressed an interest in hosting those in March after it had invaded Ukraine, which seemed like quite a provocative thing to do. So UEFA basically shut that down and said you will not be bidding for the right to host those tournaments.
How Russia gets back into the good graces with UEFA, FIFA, or any other international sports bodies, yes, that's going to be an interesting one. I don't know how that can happen at the moment given the current situation.
NOBILO: Don Riddell, thank you. Mariupol's mayor says humanitarian evacuations are going slowly with the entire process at the mercy of Russian cooperation. He says so far, Ukraine has managed to take more than 100 people out of the bomb shelters at the Azovstal Steel complex. A Ukrainian commander at the plant says it's been under constant fire since early Monday.
Also, according to Mariupol's mayor, Russian forces are creating humiliating obstacles for people trying to leave, saying civilians are being pushed through so-called filtration centers, and made to wait without food, without sleep. For so many in Mariupol, the chance to escape came far too late. The city's mayor said that more than 20,000 residents have been killed since the war began. Burying the dead has become a seemingly endless and heartbreaking task. CNN's Sara Sidner reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No tears, no remembrances, no final goodbyes, just dust to dust. The burial was over.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANYA, CEMETERY WORKER (through translator): We bury 50 people a day. Today, we've done to lots of 18 bodies and another 10, 46 in total.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SIDNER: Gravediggers like Danya can barely keep up the pace at the Starokrymske Cemetery in the outskirts of Mariupol. One's mark with only a number assigned, the bodies have yet to be identified by family.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANYA (through translator): People come and find their loved ones and bring crosses and a board.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SIDNER: CNN is not present in the Russian occupied Donbas, but footage we obtained and satellite images showed Dozens of fresh graves.
[14:35:02]
Local authorities say about 600 in total and this is not an isolated case. Images show graves have been dug in mass at two other burial grounds. This is one of them, Manhush. "They've been bringing bodies every day for a month," Ana says. "They just keep bringing more and more bit by bit."
Hereto, footage shows rows of freshly dug graves and indications bodies have been buried before being identified.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Each body is given its own grave and a coffin and a board with a number.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SIDNER: A separatist soldier, who did not want to be identified, says --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): After they are processed, the city funeral service works with the prosecutor's office to organize their burial.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SIDNER: CNN could not independently verify the claims but local authorities say the majority of those buried here and in Starokrymske were killed during Russia's assault on Mariupol.
Moscow has now seized control of most of the strategic port city, but some Ukrainian forces continue to hold ground at the Azovstal Steel Plant. So far, the Kremlin hasn't reported an official death toll but Ukrainian officials say it's in the thousands.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VADYM BOYCHENKO, MAYOR, MARIUPOL, UKRAINE (through translator): By our optimistic estimation, more than 20,000 people, women, kids, elderly, died on the streets of our city.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SIDNER: The mayor of Mariupol says because the death toll is bound to rise at Manhush. The work continues. About 100 freshly dug graves ready for the dead. As war rages, Ukrainians aren't just being murdered by strangers, but also buried by them. Sara Sidner CNN, Kyiv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NOBILO: Global backlash has been swift after the Russian foreign minister claimed Nazi leader Adolf Hitler had Jewish blood. Sergey Lavrov was defending Russia's claim that the invasion of Ukraine is aimed at "Denazifying the country" dismissing the fact that Ukraine's president is himself Jewish.
A furious statement from Lavrov's Israeli counterpart called the comments unforgivable and the lowest level of racism. It comes as Israel has tried to walk a fine line between Russia and Ukraine throughout this conflict. So let's go live to Jerusalem and our Hadas Gold. Hadas, tell us more about what the reaction has been in Israel to Lavrov's comments.
HADAS GOLD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Bianca, let's first be clear, Lavrov's comments are essentially repeating unfounded conspiracy theories about Hitler and somehow trying to justify their goal, they say they quote of Denazifying Ukraine somehow when Ukraine has a Jewish president by claiming somehow that "Oh, Hitler also had Jewish blood." He also said that the most ardent anti-Semites are usually Jews. Again, these are unfounded conspiracy theories.
Now Israel has reacted pretty swiftly they summoned the Russian ambassador for talks. The Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett called it lies that intend to accuse the Jews themselves the most horrific crimes in history, and Foreign Minister Yair lipid was even stronger in his remarks. I want to pull up a tweet that he sent out earlier today. He said that the remarks are both an unforgivable and outrageous statement, as well as a terrible historical error. Jews did not murder themselves in the Holocaust. The lowest level of racism against Jews is to accuse Jews themselves of anti-Semitism.
Now Lapid also went further and other statements saying that Israel had been trying to maintain good relations with Russia, but that this had crossed the line and that they are demanding an apology from Russia's government.
Now, as you noted, Israel has been trying to walk the sort of fine line, a delicate diplomatic balancing act between Russia and Ukraine. On the one hand, they've been trying to act as mediators in order to keep the communication lines open between Ukraine and Russia. The Prime Minister has been speaking with Zelenskyy and Putin on a regular basis.
Israel also has security concerns. They say they're concerned about hundreds of thousands of Jews, both in Russia and Ukraine. And importantly, for Israel, they're also concerned about Russia's presence in Syria, which is on Israel's northern border. Essentially, Israeli officials feel as though they have a border with Russia because of Russia's military presence there. Now Israel has condemned the war, the invasion, they've accused Russia
of war crimes, they've been sending humanitarian aid to Ukraine, but they haven't gone so far as some people want them to, which includes imposing the same sort of sanctions that many Western countries have imposed on Russia. So, the question will be whether as the atrocities mount in Ukraine, as these sort of kind of unhinged comments come from Russia's leaders, will this push Israel over the edge and start imposing those harsh sanctions, Bianca?
NOBILO: And Hadas, pivoting just to a different story where you are in your region, so the violence in the West Bank has been going for many weeks. What is the latest on the attacks there?
GOLD: So it was a peaceful day today here in Jerusalem, I should know. Around 200,000 people came to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem for prayers to celebrate Eid, to celebrate the end of Ramadan.
[14:40:07]
But this weekend was another violent series of days especially in the West Bank. It began Friday night when an Israeli security guard, who was guarding and -- one of the largest Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, was killed when two gunmen came up to the guard post where he was and opened fired on -- opened fire on him. Now Israeli forces say they later arrested two Palestinian men. And we have seen some militant groups have claimed credit for the attack.
Now later on Friday night into Saturday morning, then a Palestinian man was killed in the town of Azzun in the West Bank. This may have sort of been connected to the attack in Ariel which is where the Israeli man was killed because IDF, while they were on the manhunt for those two Palestinian gunmen, had set up road blockages and there were clashes that came out of Azzun, the IDF said that people were throwing Molotov cocktails at them and so they responded with live fire that resulted in the death of that Palestinian man.
At his funeral, there were more clashes, and three people according to the Palestinian Red Crescent were injured. Of course, this violence comes as you noted, after we've had about two months or so of violence in Israel. There have been several attacks where 14 people in Israel were killed. There's been violence in the West Bank. The Israeli military has increased its raids, its counterterrorism raids, they say in the West Bank, but that's led to the death of at least 20 Palestinians.
And we've had ongoing clashes in Jerusalem during Ramadan between Israeli forces and Palestinians at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound which is also known as the Temple Mount, a place that is so sensitive and so holy to both Jews and Muslims. And while things were calm today and the end of Ramadan is nearing, Israeli officials tell me that they don't feel as though calm is going to come anytime soon, especially when on Thursday is when Israel marks its independence day. And next week, Bianca, is the one year anniversary of that 11-day war between Hamas militants and the Israeli army. Bianca.
NOBILO: Hadas Gold in Jerusalem. Thank you. The U.S. is hoping to move its embassy in Ukraine back to Kyiv by the
end of May. The embassy's acting Ambassador says as soon as security professionals "tell us we can go back, we will go back." The U.S. closed the embassy in the capital just 10 days before the Russian invasion, sending a small number of diplomatic personnel to Lviv.
Now still to come on the program, China doubles down on its zero COVID-19 policy with mass testing across the capital. We'll bring you the latest.
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[14:45:12]
NOBILO: People in India and Pakistan are sweltering in an unprecedented heat wave as temperatures hit record highs. Experts say they're feeling the effects of the climate crisis and things are only expected to get worse. The heat has closed schools, damaged crops, and squeezed the energy supply. Millions have been left without power. Plus, it's still spring, which means they can expect even more intense temperatures this summer.
And local authorities in Beijing have announced three more rounds of mass COVID-19 testing for more than 20 million residents. It comes as the city reported 50 new local cases between Sunday and Monday. Authorities also introduced further restrictions in an effort to avoid harsh lock downs like those in Shanghai. CNN's Selina Wang has got the details.
SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Beijing is doubling down on zero-COVID policies to stamp out the latest outbreak in the capital. It's locked down parts of the city shut down major entertainment venues like Universal Studios banned in restaurant dining and suspended schools. It's also doing another round of mass testing of residents after wrapping up three rounds last week, it's launching a another three rounds of testing for more than 20 million residents.
Beijing has reported about 400 COVID cases since April 22nd, but it's taking aggressive action early to try and avoid the chaos and failures of Shanghai's city-wide lockdown. In addition, Beijing is also starting from May 5 requiring residents to show proof of negative COVID tests in order to enter any public area, including to take public transportation. This is as China is racing to contain COVID flare-ups across the country.
At least 27 cities are under some form of lockdown restrictions. That's impacting around a hundred million people. That's more than half of the U.S. population. Some of the more extreme measures are fueling outrage and frustration.
In parts of Shanghai, the city has been putting up metal fences and barricades to block off COVID hit areas. Outside of Beijing, social media video shows some residents have even been forced to hand over apartment keys so community workers can lock them in. For those who refuse, workers drill holes to chain the doors shut. These lockdown measures, the mass testing, in combination with the
country's strict border control rules, are all part of the country's zero-COVID policies.
I recently flew in from Tokyo into Qingming, China, which is 1600 miles away from Beijing. And here I'm currently in a 21-day government quarantine. Inbound travelers, they have to serve out one of the strictest quarantine rules in the world. I can only open my door to pick up food, to get my temperature checked, and to get regular COVID tests. I could frequently smell the disinfectant that's being sprayed in the hallways.
Now all these measures may sound extreme for much of the world that's learning to live with COVID, but in China, authorities are sticking with zero-COVID Which leaders here have called China's magic weapons against COVID-19.
NOBILO: In New Zealand, I slipped back into my old accent, there are emotional scenes in Auckland Airport as the country opens up to visitors as COVID travel restrictions ease.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's been a long, long, long time coming.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's been two years in suspension of just wondering if and when and never knowing if the moment was even going to come.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ye. It was looking pretty shaky there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We started without knowing if we'd ever see each other.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Basically.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NOBILO: After two years or some of the world's strictest COVID rules, visitors from 60 countries, including the U.S., the U.K. and Canada can enter New Zealand if they're vaccinated and COVID negative. The government says it puts the country back on the world map. And a great country it is.
And getting Down Under just became a little bit easier as the airline Qantas gets one step closer to launching the world's first nonstop flights to Sydney from New York or London. The airline has ordered a number of new planes designed to have less seats and more space for passengers to sleep and move around. And with the potential flight clocking in at over a whopping 19 hours, comfort is obviously key.
Still to come tonight, in Ukraine, the Lviv National Opera is a place of solace amid the horrors of war. Ahead, how ballet dancers are trying to reclaim a sense of normalcy.
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[14:52:26]]
NOBILO: The National Opera in Lviv has reopened its doors for the first time since the Russian invasion began. It's being still and quiet for over two long months. And this weekend, it held a moving ballet performance in the shadow of war. CNN's Isa Soares was there for that defiant and healing moment.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ISA SOARES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Away from the frontlines, an army of artists begin the process of mending this nation's grief, gently repairing the hurt brought on by war. At Lviv's National Opera, everyone has a part to play.
Tonight's Giselle Ballet will be the first full performance since the theater closed its doors almost two months ago. As musicians dust off their instruments and as the audience starts to trickle in, "perhaps coming to the theater is returning to a small part of our life which was there before the war. We are internally displaced from Kyiv" says Julia Dimitrieva. We had to come to Lviv while there are hostilities."
The artistic director tells me why they decided to open now. "We understand that light must defeat darkness, that life must defeat death. And the mission of the theater is to assert this." But the reminders of war are never too far away.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dear guests, are event will be suspended in case of an air raid.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Only 300 seats were allowed to be sold tonight, the capacity of the opera's bomb shelter. Still, it's sold out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: It's only minutes now until that curtain opens and you can feel the tension because this performance is extra special.
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SOARES: For a few hours, nothing else matters. As the audience and I are transported to a world of love, and beauty, playing Giselle tonight is 21 year old Daryna. "It feels great," she tells me back in her dressing room, "because dancing helps to distract from what's happening."
Like many here, her life has been shaken by war and the horrors of Bucha where mass graves were recently found mom.
[14:55:06]
"My mom and my grandmother and her sister survived occupation in Bucha," she tells me. Now she's in safety in Poland restoring her nerves.
Daryna finds solace on this stage, throwing herself behind her character. "All the negative emotions which accumulate for a long time flow out," she tells me. A cathartic performance for both those on and off stage, offering comfort to those who need it most in the hope they can lift if only just briefly this nation's aching soul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NOBILO: Finally, a powerful moment at New York's opera as Ukrainian -- that's Ukrainian soprano, Liudmyla Monastyrska, who performed in the title role of Turandot, then took her curtain draped in the Ukrainian flag, as you can see. She replaced the Russian star, Anna Netrebko, who was cut from the performance after she refused to distance herself from Vladimir Putin.
Thanks for watching tonight. Do stay with CNN. "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" is up next.
