200,000 civilians, including 52,000 children, called to leave the Donetsk region
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday evening called on residents of the Donetsk region to evacuate to escape the “Russian Terror” and the bombardments on this territory in the east of the country, largely under the control of Moscow.
“A government decision has been made on the mandatory evacuation of the Donetsk regionMr. Zelensky said in an evening video address. Please evacuate. (…) The more residents leave the Donetsk region now, the fewer people the Russian army will kill. »
“At this stage of the war, terror is Russia’s main weapon”he hammered.
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk previously announced the mandatory evacuation for the entire population of Donetsk Oblast, one of two administrative regions in the Donbass industrial basin, where Russia is gaining ground.
She had justified this decision, in declarations on television, by the destruction of the gas networks and the absence of heating next winter in the region.
Russian strikes on towns in the region cause casualties among the civilian population almost every day. During the night from Saturday to Sunday, the Ukrainian army reported Russian artillery strikes, particularly in Bakhmout and Kramatorsk, near the front line.
At least 200,000 civilians still live in the territories of the Donetsk region that are not under Russian occupation, according to an estimate by Ukrainian authorities.
“In total, there are currently about 52,000 children in the Donetsk region. The police explain to the parents that their evacuation involves providing them with accommodation and providing them with all the necessary assistance.said the national police, in charge of the operation.