Russia plans evacuations from besieged Severodonetsk plant on Wednesday

Ukrainian governor says a mass evacuation of civilians from Severodonetsk now is 'simply not possible'

An aerial view shows destroyed houses after strike in the town of Pryvillya at the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas. AFP

A humanitarian corridor will be opened in besieged Severodonetsk, a Russian general has said, as fierce fighting rages for control of the city.

Ukrainian authorities say they want to evacuate more wounded residents but fear it is not possible amid the current attacks on the city.

Col Gen Mikhail Mizintsev said evacuees would be taken to the town of Svatovo, 60 kilometres north into territory under the control of Russian and separatist forces.

He said the plan was made after Ukraine called for establishing an evacuation corridor leading to Ukrainian-controlled territory.

He said a mass evacuation of civilians from Severodonetsk now was “simply not possible” due to the relentless shelling and fighting in the city.

Ukrainian forces have been pushed to the industrial outskirts of the city because of “the scorched earth method and heavy artillery the Russians are using,” he said.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, left, and French President Emmanuel Macron visit Irpin, outside Kyiv, and survey damage following Russia's invasion. AP

Ukrainian troops fire with a French self-propelled Caesar howitzer towards Russian positions at a front line in the eastern region of Donbas. AFP

Workers pour molten steel into a mould at a foundry in Berdyansk, Zaporizhzhia region, in an area under Russian military control. AP

Russian soldiers guard an area next to a field of wheat in the Zaporizhzhia region. AP

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A man picks up debris after his house was destroyed by shelling in the city of Dobropillia, Donbas region. AFP

Smoke rises after shelling in Ukraine's breakaway enclave of Donetsk. AFP

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Russian soldiers walk near a monument at the entrance of Mariupol, which has been painted in the colours of the Russian flag. AFP

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Svitlana Nazarenko, sister of Mykhailo Tereshchenko, is comforted by her son during her brother's funeral in Kyiv. The Ukrainian soldier was killed in the Donbas region. Getty

Russian troops demine the bay and beach of Mariupol, Ukraine. AFP

A Russian soldier inspects the Azovstal steel plant, in Mariupol, in territory which is under control of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic. AP

A house heavily damaged by Russian shelling is seen through a broken window, in the town of Bakhmut, Donetsk region. AP

Maryna Golovnia sits in a van with her children as they leave their home in Bakhmut, amid fighting. Getty Images

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A Ukrainian soldier looks on from inside a tank at a position in the breakaway Donetsk enclave, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues. Reuters

Boys play on top of a damaged Russian tank in Kyiv. EPA

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A damaged Ukrainian navy ship, the 'Donbas', lies partially submerged near the pier in the port city of Mariupol. EPA

Ukrainian soldiers load a projectile into a tank near the small city of Svitlodarsk, in the breakaway Ukrainian enclave of Donetsk. EPA

Smoke rises after the Russian military struck a compound at the Azot Chemical Plant in Lysychansk, Ukraine. Reuters

A Russian serviceman on patrol outside the Ukrainian town of Schastia. AFP

Mourners gather during the funeral of Ukrainian serviceman Ruslan Skalskyi in Lviv. AFP

Civilians are evacuated from Lysychansk, in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine. AFP

A man passes two destroyed military lorries in Lysychansk. AFP

Ukrainian soldiers run for cover during clashes with Russian troops in Lysychansk. AFP

An elderly woman reacts as Ukrainian soldiers lead her to safety during a battle with Russian troops in Lysychansk. AFP

A wounded woman is assisted by Ukrainian soldiers in Lysychansk. AFP

A house burns after being shelled in Lysychansk. AFP

A Ukrainian serviceman speaks on a radio at a front line in the Donbas region. AFP

A man walks next to a damaged building in Lysychansk. Reuters

A man with children rides a bicycle along an empty street, as smoke rises after Russian shelling in Lysychansk. Reuters

An unexploded shell is stuck in the ground in Lysychansk. euters

An elderly woman, who was evacuated from the Lysychansk area, cries moments before travelling by train to western Ukraine from Pokrovsk railway station. AP

Russian troops control about 80 per cent of the eastern Ukrainian city and have destroyed all three bridges leading out of the city, said Sergiy Gaiday, Governor of the eastern Luhansk region.

“There is still an opportunity for evacuation of the wounded, communication with the Ukrainian military and local residents,” he said.

He said Russian forces had not yet blocked off the city.

About 12,000 people remain in Severodonetsk, compared to its pre-war population of 100,000. More than 500 civilians are sheltering in the Azot chemical plant, which is being relentlessly pounded by the Russians, said Mr Gaiday.

Seventy civilians were evacuated from the Luhansk region over the last day, he said.

A Russian general said a humanitarian corridor will be opened on Wednesday to evacuate civilians from the Azot chemical plant in Severodonetsk.

Col Gen Mizintsev, head of the National Defence Management Centre, is accused by Ukraine of human rights beaches while commanding troops during the long siege of Mariupol, Ukraine’s key port on the Sea of Azov that has been taken over by the Russians.

Russian forces have in the last few weeks pressed hard to capture Ukraine’s eastern industrial Donbas area, which borders Russia and is made up of the regions of Luhansk and Donetsk.

“The situation is difficult,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelesnkyy said on Tuesday. “Our task is to fight back.”

Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, one of the aid organisations supplying food to the Donbas, said fighting in the past few weeks made regular food deliveries impossible.

Now, he said, the remaining civilians in the city “are almost entirely cut off from aid supplies after the destruction of the last bridge".