Fifty Ukrainians were evacuated from the Azovstal steel plant in the battered city of Mariupol Friday, officials in Kyiv said.
"Today we were able to evacuate from Azovstal 50 women, children and elderly people," Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said on Telegram.
Evacuations continued Friday of civilians still holed up inside the besieged plant, the last pocket of Ukrainian resistance against Russian forces in the port city, but reports of renewed firing cast doubt on a promised truce.
Vereshchuk accused Russia of violating the promised ceasefire.
"The convoy had to stand near Azovstal the whole day. Fighting and provocations were going on there," Vereshchuk wrote.
"The enemy constantly violated the ceasefire agreement. That is why the evacuation proceeded very slowly."
She added that another round of evacuations is scheduled for Saturday.
Ten weeks into Russia's war that has killed thousands, destroyed cities and uprooted more than 13 million people, taking full control of strategically located Mariupol would be a major win for Moscow.
(Published 07 May 2022, 02:28 IST)
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