The military governor of Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk region said evacuation corridors for civilians were “being adjusted” following a Russian missile strike on Kramatorsk train station on Friday.
Speaking on national television, Serhii Haidai said: “Unfortunately, after yesterday’s disaster from Kramatorsk, our evacuation routes are being adjusted, but we are ready, we will continue to evacuate people.”
Haidai said shelling was continuing across the region.
“All settlements are being shelled,” he said. “The most difficult areas are Rubizhne, Popasna and Hirske community. The Hirske community is shelled from morning till night, constantly, the enemy has not stopped at all, they are fired on with all kinds of weapons, and by aircraft as well. Fighting continues in Popasna and Rubizhne.”
On Saturday, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister, Iryna Vereshchuk, announced on Telegram that 10 evacuation corridors have been agreed.
In the Donetsk region, she said there would be one corridor from Mariupol to Zaporizhzhia for private vehicles.
In the Zaporizhzhia region, Vereshchuk said four corridors, from Berdiansk, Tokmak, Enerhodar and Melitopol to Zaporizhzhia would open for private vehicles and buses.
In the Luhansk region, Vereshchuk named five corridors to Bakhmut, coming from Severodonetsk, Lysychansk, Popasna, Rubizhne and the village of Hirske.
Some background: At least 50 people, including five children, were killed and almost 100 injured in a Russian missile strike on a train station used as an evacuation hub in the eastern city of Kramatorsk on Friday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the strike was “another war crime of Russia, for which everyone involved will be held accountable.”
Kramatorsk is a key railway evacuation point for civilians looking to flee heavy fighting in eastern Ukraine. Ukrainian officials have also warned that Russia is readying a major offensive in the eastern Donbas region.
CNN’s Christiane Amanpour and Jo Shelley contributed reporting to this post.
