MOSCOW – Russia announced a ceasefire starting Monday morning and the opening of humanitarian corridors in several areas, a day after hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian civilians attempting to flee to safety were forced to shelter from Russian shelling that pummeled cities in Ukraine’s center, north and south, RIA Novosti reported.
The announcement follows two failed attempts to evacuate civilians from Mariupol, from which the International Committee of the Red Cross estimated 200,000 people were trying to flee.
Russia and Ukraine have traded blame for the failure.
The Russian task force said Monday’s ceasefire and the opening of the corridors was announced at the request of French President Emmanuel Macron, who spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday.
Evacuation routes published by RIA Novosti, citing the Defense Ministry, show that civilians will be able to leave to Russia and Belarus.
Russian forces will be observing the ceasefire with drones, the task force said. The earlier breakdown of evacuations came as Ukraine officials said that Russian shelling intensified across the country.
