Ukrainians navigate a perilous route to safety out of besieged Mariupol
"It is either die or leave. We had no other way," says one woman who arrived in Zaporizhzhia after three attempts at escape. Officials say nearly 100,000 people are still trapped in the besieged city.
ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine — They come packed into battered buses and cars, riding in new Audis, old Ladas and everything in between. Some arrive with windows blown out, with pieces of white cloth tied to door handles and antennas or signs that say "CHILDREN," in hopes that Russians will withhold their fire.
A month into Russia's bombardment of Mariupol, more than three-quarters of the population has fled this besieged city on Ukraine's southeastern coast, officials say, with thousands more escaping daily.
Each afternoon, crowds of people arrive from Mariupol at the parking lot of a mall on the edge of Zaporizhzia, after terrifying journeys through Russian-occupied territory. Officials have designated the parking
