Logo
Sound journalism, grounded in facts and Biblical truth | Donate

Civilians evacuate Mariupol steel plant


A Red Cross official waves a white flag while approaching the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol, Ukraine, on Sunday. Associated Press/International Committee of the Red Cross

Civilians evacuate Mariupol steel plant

Elderly women and mothers with children climbed out of the Azovstal steel plant Sunday after a nearly two-month siege. The Soviet-era plant with a network of bunkers and tunnels is the city of Mariupol’s last holdout not occupied by Russian forces. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said more than 100 civilians would reach the Ukrainian-controlled city of Zaporizhzhia on Monday. Another group of evacuees arrived in the village of Bezimenne in Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine. 

Does this mark the end of the siege? One of the Ukrainians defending the steel plant said Russian forces resumed shelling once the evacuation wrapped up Sunday. About 100,000 people, including some 2,000 Ukrainian fighters beneath the steel plant, remain in Mariupol. Denys Shlega, commander of the 12th Operational Brigade of Ukraine’s National Guard, said several hundred civilians and nearly 500 wounded soldiers are trapped in the plant.

Dig deeper: Follow WORLD’s latest coverage of the war in Ukraine.


Onize Ohikere

Onize is WORLD’s Africa reporter and deputy global desk chief. She is a World Journalism Institute graduate and earned a journalism degree from Minnesota State University–Moorhead. Onize resides in Abuja, Nigeria.

@onize_ohiks


An actual newsletter worth subscribing to instead of just a collection of links. —Adam

Sign up to receive The Sift email newsletter each weekday morning for the latest headlines from WORLD’s breaking news team.
COMMENT BELOW

Please wait while we load the latest comments...

Comments