According to the head of the ministry, less than four thousand people remained, including at least 38 children. He noted that
before the start of the full-scale Russian invasion last February, more than 70,000 people lived in the city, including 12,000 children.
95 percent of the residents have now been evacuated, he added.
Vereschuk emphasized that it is currently very difficult to reach the city due to heavy artillery attacks. “Furthermore, those who remained are holed up in basements, but they do not indicate their location, which could be used to find them,” he explained, adding that they are still trying to evacuate the civilians who remained in the city.
Ukrainska Pravda also reminded that at the beginning of February there were still around two hundred children in Bahmut.
The Office of the Ombudsman of Ukraine said that 356 children are currently considered missing in Ukraine. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, 16,224 children were abducted by the Russians, of whom 308 were brought back. In addition, 10,230 missing children were found.
According to the agency’s data, 464 children died and another 931 were injured as a result of the armed aggression.
Cover image: Getty Images
