The United Nations is conducting a “safe passage operation” for civilians from the Azofstal steel plant in Mariupol, a spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said on Sunday.
The humanitarian operation began on Friday and is being co-ordinated with the International Committee of the Red Cross, Russia and Ukraine, UN humanitarian spokesman Saviano Abreu told Reuters.
He stressed that the members of the operation arrived in Azovstal Saturday morning.
He added that no further details could be released so as not to endanger the safety of evacuees and the convoy.
According to previous calculations, approx 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers and 1,000 civilians continued to be trapped, under testimony, in the factory.
The steel plant is leveled according to a new satellite image of the company Maxar Technologies that saw the light of day on Saturday.
The Ukrainian military says Russian warplanes have continued to launch attacks on the besieged city, focusing on the steel industry.
Videos and images of two Ukrainian soldiers in the galleries came to light and sent the videos to their wives. They reveal the dire situation that prevails in the basements of Azofstal, with soldiers seriously injured in makeshift beds. They report that they share 1.5 liters of water, per four people per day, in order to withstand and have supplies for the next few days. At the same time, Russia is constantly bombarding the region with heavy weapons.
Twenty civilians left the steel plant to be relocated to Zaporizhia, the Azov battalion defending the area said on Saturday.
“Twenty civilians, women and children … have been relocated to an agreed location and we hope to head to Zaporizhia, in Ukrainian-controlled territory.”
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