Olga Nikitina, center, who has escaped from the besieged city of Mariupol, hugs her sister after arriving in Lviv, western Ukraine, Sunday, March 20, 2022.
As the war between Russia and Ukraine enters its day 24, nearly 10 million Ukrainians have fled their homes amid the Russian invasion. Data shared by the UNHCR said people were displaced inside the country or fled abroad, NHK World reported. Meanwhile, Russia demanded that Ukrainians in the besieged city of Mariupol lay down their arms on Monday in exchange for a safe exit from the city. However, Ukraine rejected the offer. Mariupol residents were given until 5 a.m. Monday to respond to the proposal, which included raising a white flag to them. Russia did not say what action it would take if the offer was rejected. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky early Sunday accused Russia of war crimes over its siege, describing the attack on the city as “a terror that will be remembered for centuries to come.” In his nightly address to the nation, Zelensky said Ukraine is interested in peace, and that ongoing talks with Russia are “essential”. Pope Francis on Sunday condemned Russia’s “paradoxical war” against Ukraine, describing it as “brutal and holy inhumanity”. An adviser to the President of Ukraine said there was no immediate military aid to Mariupol, adding that the closest forces capable of aiding were already fighting against Russian forces at least 100 kilometers (60 mi) away. . The fighting continues around the Azovstal steel plant, one of the largest in Europe.