Azov fighters seized Mariupol maternity hospital days ago - Lavrov

Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov spoke about the shelling of the maternity hospital in Mariupol. According to Lavrov, the hospital was used as a base for extremists.

The maternity hospital in Mariupol, the shelling of which was reported on Wednesday, March 9, has long been captured by members of the Azov battalion. Extremists were using the hospital as their base, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, RIA Novosti reports.

Several days ago, Russia informed the UN that there were neither patients nor medical personnel left at the maternity hospital in Mariupol.

"This is not the first time when we see pathetic cries about so-called atrocities committed by the Russian armed forces. On March 7 or 6, our delegation presented facts at a meeting of the UN Security Council proving that the maternity hospital had long been seized by fighters of the Azov battalion and other radicals. They kicked all patients, all nurses, and all service personnel out," Lavrov said.

Lavrov also said that the foreign media manipulate public opinion by providing incomplete information about the attack on the maternity hospital.

Earlier on March 10, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the Russian authorities did not have clear information about the shelling of the maternity hospital in Mariupol. The information was to be requested from the military, he added.