War in Ukraine live updates: A Ukrainian commander makes a desperate plea for evacuation from Mariupol

Published April 20, 2022 at 8:08 AM EDT
A parking lot is strewn with damaged cars and trucks.
Alexei Alexandrov
/
AP
Damaged and burned vehicles are seen at a destroyed part of the Illich steel plant as smoke rises from another area of the plant in Mariupol on Tuesday. Civilians and soldiers are trapped inside.

Russian forces have surrounded a steel plant in the besieged city, with Ukrainian soldiers and civilians trapped inside. Ukrainian fighters have refused to surrender.

Here's what we're following today:

Wimbledon ban: Tennis officials have blocked Russian and Belarusian players from competing in June.

Heavy shelling in Kharkiv: The U.S. believes the assault is a prelude for larger attacks to come.

Shelling in Kharkiv: Russian attacks have intensified in Ukraine's second-largest city, and residents are told to take shelter.