Rabat – Morocco’s Ambassador to Ukraine Faouz El Achabi has reported the evacuation of 35 students from the conflict zone in Sumy. The embassy conducted the operation in coordination with Ukrainian authorities.
Ambassador El Achabi noted that the Moroccan embassy has mobilized all its resources to help the stranded students, adding that the officials stayed in touch with the students until they were able to leave to Poltava, and then Lviv, where the Moroccan embassy has been relocated to, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The students reached Lviv after a 28 hours journey, taking the train as the safest available means of transportation, said El Achabi.
“The student evacuation operation was long and arduous due to the difficult negotiations that preceded the conclusion of a ceasefire agreement between Russia and Ukraine,” added the ambassador.
On March 8, the Russian and Ukrainian authorities agreed to implement a ceasefire to rescue civilians in the border city of Sumy.
“Today [March 8] humanitarian corridor for the city of Sumy should be opened. This fact was officially approved by the Russian Ministry of Defense in a letter to the International Committee of the Red Cross. In other words, both the Red Cross and we, as the party with which the opening of the humanitarian corridor was agreed, have documentary evidence,” said Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk.
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The temporary ceasefire allowed around 1,000 foreign students to flee the city, reported the regional governor.
The number of refugees fleeing Ukraine has amounted to more than 2 million since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24.
Poland has hosted the largest chunk, welcoming 1,524,903 people ahead of Hungary (225,046), Slovakia (176,092), Moldova (104,929), and Romania (84,671).
Ironically, Russia and its ally Belarus are also common destinations for refugees fleeing Ukraine with 99,831 refugees entering Russia and 858 people arriving in Belarus. This could be explained by geographic proximity and Russia’s push for humanitarian corridors towards its territories and Belarus.
As of March 11, Morocco continues efforts to evacuate stranded nationals in Ukraine. The emergency phone line remains in operation as the diplomatic bodies are mobilized at access points to Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, and Poland.
So far, more than 7,000 Moroccans residing or studying in Ukraine have returned to their homeland through mostly special flights organized by Royal Air Maroc.
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