War in Ukraine. The horrors of war by Maryinka

The ruins of Maryinka with towering slag heaps from local coal mines in the background

Pulverized buildings and shell craters are all that remain of the small eastern Donetsk city of Maryinka on May 11. As part of the Bakhmut-Avdiyivka-Maryinka front line, the city has endured punishing Russian assaults as the Kremlin's forces try to push deeper into the Donbas.

The city that once had a pre-war population of nearly 10,000 people is now a wasteland of destroyed buildings.

Located nearly 86 kilometers southwest of Bakhmut - the scene of the bloodiest fighting of the war - both cities have endured relentless and devastating artillery duels that have left behind apocalyptic scenes of destruction.

Maryinka first saw fighting as far back as 2014, when Russian-backed separatists captured the city. A few months later, Ukrainian forces regained control, though the city was shelled on a regular basis.

In 2015, fresh battles involving over 1,000 fighters, tanks, and heavy artillery took place in Maryinka.

On March 17, 2022, new battles for the city began following Russia's full-scale invasion.

Buildings were purposefully targeted for destruction in order to prevent them from being used as cover.