Humanitarian charity says thousands of civilian lives in danger if they remain in the besieged city
Russia-Ukraine war: latest updates
Ukraine has launched a fresh attempt to rescue civilians from Mariupol after warnings from the Red Cross that thousands of lives depend on the successful evacuation of people trapped in the besieged city by Russian forces.
A total of 45 buses were en route to the nearby southern coastal town of Berdyansk, Ukrainian deputy prime minister Iryna Vereshchuk said, as well as a team delivering humanitarian aid and assisting evacuations from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The convoy was expected to enter the city on Friday morning after Russian promises of a limited ceasefire along the route from Mariupol to the Ukraine-held city of Zaporizhzhia.