Dozens of civilians have been evacuated from Mariupol to both Russia-controlled and Ukraine-controlled territory after weeks under siege.
Some have left the Azovstal steelworks, the last hold-out of Ukrainian troops in the strategically significant city.
Russia said dozens of civilians have arrived in a village it controls.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said a large group is also on its way to Zaporizhzhia, which Ukraine maintains control of.
“The first group of about 100 people is already heading to the controlled area,” he tweeted. “Tomorrow we’ll meet them in Zaporizhzhia. Grateful to our team! Now they, together with UN, are working on the evacuation of other civilians from the plant.”
The United Nations confirmed it was involved with the operation, alongside the Red Cross and the “parties to the conflict”
The evacuation convoy arrived on Saturday morning, the UN said – but did not give details on where people were being taken or how many had left, saying that sharing details could jeopardise the safety of the operation.
One of the evacuees to Russian-held territory told Reuters news agency: “You just can’t imagine what we have been through – the terror.”
“I feared that the bunker would not withstand it – I had terrible fear,” 37-year-old Natalia Usmanova said. “When the bunker started to shake, I was hysterical, my husband can vouch for that: I was so worried the bunker would cave in.”
The first civilians managed to leave the Azovstal plant on Saturday, but their fate was unclear for most of the following day.
Now, the Russian defense ministry says some 80 civilians have left the besieged steelworks and were taken to Bezimenne, a village in Russian-held territory in Ukraine. They are being provided with medical care and supplies, it said.
In a statement carried by Russian media, the ministry also said that civilians who wanted to leave for Ukraine-controlled areas “have been handed over to representatives of the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross”.
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