Evacuation Of Civilians Continues In Ukraine's Donetsk Region

The evacuation of civilians from the frontline city of Siversk in Ukraine's Donetsk region continues on Thursday

UKRAINE, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 16th Mar, 2023 ) :The evacuation of civilians from the frontline city of Siversk in Ukraine's Donetsk region continues on Thursday.

Life in Siversk in the Bakhmut district, where the most intense conflicts have taken place, has almost come to a standstill.

Most of the remaining civilians in Siversk have been living in shelters and the basement of their houses for months.

Located only 3 to 4 kilometers (1.8 to 2.4 miles) away from the front line where heavy fighting continues, Siversk reflects the bitter face of the war.

The remaining residents of the city generally do not go out on the streets and only come out during the distribution of humanitarian aid and try to return to their homes quickly after receiving the aid.

But now, they have been asked to leave their homes as they are being taken to safer places through armored vehicles with the help of local security forces.

"The locations � are under constant Russian attack. Civilian settlements here are the target of these intense attacks," Oleg Kirnitskiy, the leader of a group responsible for the evacuation of civilians in the Donetsk region, told Anadolu.

Noting that they can only work with armored vehicles, Kirnitskiy said that they continue the evacuation work together with the special teams of the Interior Ministry.

"The Russian army is firing on all roads leading to the settlements on the front line. The attacks are carried out on both settlements and vehicles," he said.

He said that they evacuated a family on Thursday that lived in a neighborhood about 2 kilometers (2.4 miles) from the front line.

"We are using armored vehicles during the evacuation as Russian forces are attacking civilian settlements. We cannot risk people's lives. During an evacuation in the Donetsk region three days ago, our armored vehicle was attacked but no one was harmed," Kirnitskiy said.

Now in its second year, the war between Russia and Ukraine has so far killed 8,231 civilians and wounded 13,734 others, according to the latest UN figures.