WWhilst Russia continues to increase military pressure in the Donbass, the southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhia is preparing to take in more refugees. On Saturday evening, the commander of the Ukrainian forces trapped in Mariupol reported that for the first time a group of 20 women and children were allowed to leave the premises of the embattled Azov steelworks, where around 1,000 civilians are said to be hiding alongside the last remaining Ukrainian fighters.
Russian sources reported a total of 46 people who had been taken from the site. On Sunday afternoon, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke of around 100 civilians who were on their way from Mariupol to Zaporizhia.
focal point for refugees
Mediated by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, Kyiv and Moscow agreed last week to set up an escape route for the civilians remaining in the steelworks, where an unknown number of fighters from the Ukrainian “Azov regiment” are holed up. In the past, however, Russia had mostly not kept its promises for a ceasefire for evacuation.
The industrial city of Zaporizhia has become a hub for refugees from embattled southern and eastern Ukraine since the Russian invasion began. Since the beginning of March, 115,000 refugees have been registered in the reception center in a commercial area in the south of the city alone. Most of them came in convoys of private vehicles organized by family members and volunteers, as agreed safe escape corridors for an evacuation in buses repeatedly failed due to Russian fire.
However, since Russia intensified its offensive in the Donbass around two weeks ago, the number of refugees arriving has steadily decreased. In the end, only fewer than a hundred people a day were able to escape to Zaporizhia because of the fierce fighting. On Sunday, a few cars with refugees from the Donetsk and Zaporizhia regions arrived in a column.
The inmates reported that they saw a convoy on the way, possibly coming from Mariupol. However, the Russian forces initially did not let him pass, citing the heavy fighting in the area. It remained unclear whether these were civilians from the “Azovstal” area.
Zelenskyy said the convoy was expected to reach Zaporizhia on Monday. However, security forces told the FAZ that they assume that the civilians from the “Azovstal” area could need up to three days to get out of the contested areas. On the way from Mariupol to the front there are more than 20 Russian checkpoints where the vehicles are stopped. Refugees and helpers report harassing checks and regular abuse by the soldiers, including arbitrary killings. In addition, refugees from Mariupol are only allowed to leave Russia in the direction of the pro-Russian separatist areas.
The Russian troops are approaching: a road paved with sandbags in Zaporizhia
:
Image: Daniel Pilar
The front is only about 50 kilometers from Zaporizhia. At the weekend it was said that the cities of Orikhiv and Vasylivka were under heavy artillery fire. The city fears that Russia will intensify its attacks over the next few days in order to gain as much territory as possible before the heavy weapons promised by the West reach and reinforce the Ukrainian forces. The entrances to Zaporizhschja are now secured with numerous defense systems. The night curfew was brought forward to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
The Russian army also intensified its attacks from the east over the weekend in order to encircle the Ukrainian forces stationed in the Donbass from two sides. After capturing the city of Novotoshkivske in the Luhansk Oblast, Russian troops are advancing on Orikhove, according to Ukrainian sources. The army leadership in Kyiv also reported on Sunday that nine Russian attacks had been repelled within 24 hours. According to the information, eight Russian battle tanks and 24 armored vehicles were destroyed.
Kyiv also reported the shooting down of two Russian fighter jets, a helicopter and four Orlan 10 drones. Artillery and rocket launcher fire was also reported again from the embattled city of Kharkov in eastern Ukraine, which lies north of the Donbass.