Donetsk, Apr 11 – DAN. DPR has evacuated more than 135,000 people from Mariupol, Russia's Inter-Ministerial HQ for Humanitarian Response in Ukraine said.
"135,659 people have already been rescued from Mariupol through the humanitarian corridor in the eastern direction without any participation of the Ukrainian side from the lawlessness of the nationalists, including 696 people over the past day," the report says.
Russian troops provide support to the civilian population during the special military operation. For example, more than 9.5 thousand temporary accommodation centres have been organized for refugees in Russia.
Mariupol is the largest city on the shores of the Azov sea. Founded in 1778, it has become an important industrial hub in Donbass and a major sea port.
On May 9, 2014 Ukrainian armed formations opened fire on a peaceful Victory Day celebration rally, killing many of the city residents. On May 11 same year a referendum voted massively in favour of an independent DPR. Kiev forces occupied the city on June 13, 2014.
After Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the special military operation to demilitarize and denazify Ukraine, the joint DPR-LPR coalition launched on February 25, 2022 its operation to liberate Mariupol.
They have so far managed to tighten a noose around the city, and currently a mopping up is ongoing to identify and neutralize nationalistic units remaining in the city. A large-scale evacuation effort is underway, as Ukrainian nationalists refused to let people out of the city, fearing immediate liquidation once their live shield is gone. *ot