Vladimir Putin cites 'terrorist act' on Crimea bridge for 'retaliatory' missile attacks across Ukraine

The bombardment Wednesday of the theater, which had become a makeshift shelter as combat tore across the port city over the past three weeks and made thousands homeless, left many people buried in the burning rubble, Ukraine's foreign ministry said in a statement. There was no immediate word on how many people were killed or injured.

At least as recently as Monday, the pavement in front of and behind the once-elegant theater was marked with huge white letters spelling out ``CHILDREN'' in Russian, according to images released by the Maxar space technology company.

``My heart breaks from what Russia is doing to our people,'' Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday night, hours after he delivered a speech via video to the U.S. Congress that garnered several ovations.

The Russian defense ministry denied bombing the theater or anywhere else in Mariupol on Wednesday.

Six nations have called for a U.N. Security Council meeting on Ukraine on Thursday afternoon, ahead of an expected vote Friday on a Russian resolution demanding protection for Ukrainian civilians ``in vulnerable situations,'' yet making no mention of Moscow's responsibility for the war.