The Russian Defense Ministry claims it will stop firing on Monday at 10 a.m. local time (2 p.m. ET) to allow civilians to flee their homes in the Ukrainian cities of Kiev, Kharkiv, Sumy and Mariupol, despite repeated violations of previous agreements.
On Monday, the ministry said in a statement that the decision comes “at the personal request” of French President Emmanuel Macron and the relevant details have been passed on to international bodies, including the United Nations.
Civilians killed during evacuation: On Sunday, a Russian military strike struck an evacuation crossing point in a Kiev suburb, killing a family with two children and several other civilians fleeing their homes, the city’s mayor said.
Two mortar or artillery shells have hit the checkpoint in the suburb of Irpin, northwest of Kiev, Ukrainian authorities said. International media filming at the checkpoint reported that a grenade landed as a stream of civilians passed through.
Another ceasefire attempt: A first attempt to cease fire and open evacuation routes in Mariupol and Volnovakha failed on Saturday, with Ukrainian authorities delaying evacuations due to repeated Russian ceasefire violations.
Russia claimed its forces had resumed their offensive in Mariupol and Volnovakha due to “Ukrainian reluctance”.
A second attempt was foiled within hours on Sunday, with Ukrainian authorities saying Russian forces were regrouping their forces and resuming heavy shelling of Mariupol.
Monday marks the third attempt.
