Russia has declared a partial ceasefire in two Ukrainian cities to allow civilians languishing there to escape to safety, a statement from the Russian Defense Ministry has confirmed.
According to details, the ceasefire is being observed in Mariupol and Volnovakha, the two South-Eastern Ukrainian cities located in Donetsk—one of the two separatist-controlled regions at the heart of Ukraine war along with Luhansk. Both regions have witnessed intense fighting since the start of Russian military aggression.
The ceasefire took effect earlier today at 7 AM GMT and is expected to last several days to allow the hundreds of thousands of residents of the two cities to leave their homes and take refuge elsewhere.
Taking to social media, the administrations of Mariupol and Volnovakha announced that humanitarian corridors have been opened by the invading Russian forces to let people escape the war.
The officials told the citizens with private vehicles to help each other in fleeing as much as possible and strictly ordered them to leave the cities only from the evacuation routes designated by the Russian forces.
As for those without any resources, the administrations of both cities will operate special buses that will run from different points till the completion of the evacuation of all citizens.
