Russian bombing has completely destroyed a children’s and maternity hospital in the besieged port city of Mariupol in southern Ukraine.

Regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said the strike happened during an agreed ceasefire and left 17 wounded, including women in labour.

It was not immediately clear whether there were any fatalities. Ukrainian MP Dmytro Gurin claimed there were ‘a lot of killed and wounded women’ but this has not been confirmed by the local authority.

Mariupol City Council said ‘several bombs’ were dropped on the children’s hospital, adding: ‘The destruction is colossal.’

President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed children are under the wreckage as he shared harrowing footage of an obliterated maternity ward.

He tweeted: ‘Mariupol. Direct strike of Russian troops at the maternity hospital. People, children are under the wreckage. Atrocity!

‘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 embattled leader has been pressing Nato allies to enforce a no-fly zone above Ukraine’s skies as Russia continues to target civilian infrastructure in its indiscriminate bombing campaign.

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But countries have refused to heed the demand over fears it would spark a World War III that Moscow has warned would be ‘nuclear and destructive’.

Responding to news of the attack, Boris Johnson said the UK is exploring more ways it can support Ukraine’s resistance.

The prime minister tweeted: ‘There are few things more depraved than targeting the vulnerable and defenceless.

‘The UK is exploring more support for Ukraine to defend against airstrikes and we will hold Putin to account for his terrible crimes’

Mariupol council said that information on casualties is being clarified as it condemned the attack.

Sharing footage of the destroyed building on Telegram, officials said: ‘Another terrible video of the horrific consequences of the terrorist attack on a children’s hospital in Mariupol. The Russian army is fascist.’

Mr Kyrylenko has also posted a video on Facebook showing the extent of the damage caused in the strike.

He wrote that Russia has ‘not only crossed the border of unacceptable relations between states and peoples. You have crossed the line of humanity’.

‘Stop calling yourselves human beings,’ he added.

Mariupol is surrounded by Putin’s troops and has been the site of heavy bombardment for days.

The Red Cross has described the situation as ‘apocalyptic’ amid a shortage of food, water and electricity.

Days of shelling have largely cut residents off from the outside world and forced them to scavenge for food and water.

Authorities today announced another ceasefire to allow civilians to escape from Mariupol and other besieged areas.

Previous attempts to establish safe evacuation corridors have largely failed due to attacks by Russian forces.

There was no evidence that civilians were successfully evacuated today.

Ukraine’s foreign minister accused Russia of holding over 400,000 residents hostage in the city and blocking aid and evacuation routes.

Dmytro Kuleba said: ‘Indiscriminate shelling continues. Almost 3,000 newborn babies lack medicine and food. I urge the world to act.’

Mariupol. Russian artillery ruined maternity hospital and children hospital. A lot of killed and wounded women. No information about children and newborn yet. Hey, @UN how are you doing? Please retweet pic.twitter.com/QJSfUMMngW

Petrifying war crime in Mariupol. Russian air strike targeted a hospital and a maternity house. We could stop this barbarism by protecting our skies. For the sake of humanity, provide us with aircraft, now! Lives are being lost while this is being considered over and over again. pic.twitter.com/CkacLlF0ZQ

Mariupol’s deputy mayor claims 1,200 people have been killed in the city in the two weeks since the Russian invasion.

One of the victims is said to be a child who died of dehydration due to water outages caused by Russians, President Zelensky said.

In a video briefing yesterday, he said the child’s death was ‘probably the first such case since the Second World War’, adding: ‘Listen to me carefully, in 2022, a child died from dehydration.’

During his address, the comedian-turned war leader also accused the Kremlin of having launched a bombing campaign against the northeastern city of Sumy which was ‘turning it into hell’.

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He has pleaded repeatedly for warplanes to counter Russia’s significant air power, though Western countries have disagreed over how best to do that amid concerns it could raise the risk of the war expanding beyond Ukraine.

Poland late on Tuesday offered to give the US 28 fighter planes for Ukraine’s use. But Pentagon officials rejected that proposal, which involved transferring the jets at a US base in Germany, saying it was ‘untenable’.

Meanwhile, Germany has said it will certainly not send warplanes to Ukraine.

Downing Street also dismissed the plan. A spokesman for the PM said: ‘The prime minister has been clear it wouldn’t be tenable for Nato pilots and Nato-badged jets to be shooting down Russian aircraft.’

Alexander Rodnyanksy, an adviser to Zelensky, has said the West will have to confront Putin ‘one way or another’.

He said Ukraine wants more air support so it can create its own no-fly zone – adding that all of country believes it is not getting enough from the West.

‘What else needs to happen for the West to realise this is a conflict that they will be engaged in more directly anyway,’ he told Sky News.

‘You will have to confront this regime one way or another.’

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, the country has suffered widespread damages and loss of life amid a major bombing campaign.

Millions of people have fled the country, with thousands of British people opening up their homes to Ukrainian refugees.

During the course of the war, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has remained in Kyiv, despite the Ukrainian capital being subjected to a barrage of bombing.

Zelensky has continuously pushed for aid and support from world leaders, as well as pressing for fast-tracked NATO membership.

Meanwhile, Russia's President Vladimir Putin has been widely condemned for his attack on Ukraine.

His actions have been met by harsh economic sanctions, bans from competing in major sporting events, and countries moving away from using Russian oil.

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