Ukraine: "Over 6,600 Evacuated Through Humanitarian Corridor... Russia, Do Not Kidnap"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] On the 19th (local time), CNN reported that more than 6,600 civilians evacuated through humanitarian corridors from major Ukrainian cities surrounded by Russian forces.

According to the report, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, a senior official of the Ukrainian presidential office, announced that a total of 6,623 people evacuated from major cities in one day, including 4,128 from Mariupol (1,172 of whom were children).

Mariupol, surrounded by Russian forces, is experiencing a humanitarian crisis as drinking water and food supplies run out and water and electricity services are cut off. The difficulties for civilians are increasing due to continuous Russian airstrikes. The first civilian evacuation from this city took place on the 14th. It is known that about 200,000 of Mariupol’s population of 400,000 have expressed their intention to evacuate.

In the Kyiv region, 1,820 citizens who came from nearby villages have evacuated, and Tymoshenko stated that 675 people have evacuated from Luhansk as well.

Meanwhile, the Mariupol City Council strongly condemned in a statement on the same day, saying, "Thousands of Mariupol citizens were forcibly taken by Russian troops against their will last week and moved into Russian territory," accusing them of illegally kidnapping civilians and continuing airstrikes. Vadym Boychenko, mayor of Mariupol, also criticized, saying, "What the invaders did today was something familiar to the elderly generation who experienced the horrific events when Nazis forcibly took people during World War II," adding, "It is hard to imagine in the 21st century that people are forcibly taken to another country."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.