Russia to open humanitarian corridor for civilian evacuation from Azovstal

MOSCOW, May 4 (Xinhua) -- The Russian military announced on Wednesday that it will open a humanitarian corridor from Thursday to Saturday for the evacuation of civilians from the blocked Azovstal plant in Ukraine's Mariupol.

The corridor will be effective from 08:00 to 18:00 Moscow time (0500 to 1500 GMT) in the three days, the Joint Coordination Headquarters of the Russian Federation for Humanitarian Response said in a statement.

During this period, Russian troops and the forces of Donetsk will unilaterally cease hostilities and ensure the withdrawal of civilians both to Russia and to areas controlled by Ukraine, it added.