Mariupol evacuation halted as civilians killed near Kyiv

The city council of Ukraine’s Mariupol says an evacuation of some of the 400,000 residents trapped by encircling Russian forces is taking place on March 6 under a temporary cease-fire that will last till 9 p.m. local time.

A similar plan was abandoned on March 5 after the cease-fire was not fully observed, with both sides trading blame.

Meanwhile, fighting continued in many other areas on March 6 as the Russian invasion of Ukraine entered its 11th day, causing deaths and destruction, and forcing more than 1.5 million people to leave the country.

Moscow has also intensified its attacks on media. A host of international broadcasters, including the BBC, CNN, RFE/RL, and Germany’s ARD and ZDF suspended reporting from Russia after it passed a law punishing the publication of what it calls “fake news” about its invasion with jail terms of up to 15 years.

Ukraine’s military said on March 6 that it was fighting “fierce battles” with Russian forces on the edge of the southern city of Mykolayiv — which controls the road to the key Black Sea city of Odesa in the west.

Ukrainian officials said that Russian forces launched hundreds of missiles and artillery attacks across the country, including dropping powerful bombs on residential areas of Chernihiv, a city north of the capital of Kyiv. Dozens of civilians were reported killed in Chernihiv.

Residents tried to flee people the towns of Bucha and Irpin as they were pounded by air strikes.