More than 1.5 million people have fled Ukraine in search of sanctuary in neighbouring countries, the head of the UN refugee agency said.
Tweeting today, the UN high commissioner for refugees (UNHCR), Filippo Grandi, said the shocking figure represents “the fastest growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II.”
The UNHCR did not immediately offer a more precise breakdown of the number.
Grandi is currently visiting countries bordering Ukraine. He yesterday reported he “saw thousands and thousands of people streaming across Ukraine’s border crossing with Moldova.”
Moldova’s minister for foreign affairs, Nicu Popescu, said today that 201,133 refugees have entered the country since Russia commenced its invasion on 24 February.
Meanwhile, some 40,000 civilians from besieged Mariupol will be able to leave the city between 9am and 6pm, its council has said.
A similar plan was postponed yesterday as Ukraine claimed Russian troops were not observing the ceasefire order along the full length of the evacuation route.
