10 million Ukrainians have fled homes since war began: UN

U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said on Sunday that 10 million Ukrainians have fled their homes amid Moscow’s invasion, leaving them either displaced internally or as refugees abroad.

“Among the responsibilities of those who wage war, everywhere in the world, is the suffering inflicted on civilians who are forced to flee their homes,” Grandi said in a tweet.

In an earlier tweet on Friday, Grandi said “people continue to flee because they are afraid of bombs, airstrikes and indiscriminate destruction.”

“Aid is vital but can’t stop fear,” he added.

The U.N.’s refugee agency has said over 3 million refugees have left the country entirely since the invasion began more than three weeks ago. 

Over 1.9 million of those refugees have gone to Poland, while others have fled to Romania, Moldova, Hungary and Slovakia.

On Sunday, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said that the country will open seven humanitarian corridors to provide a safe path for civilians to leave frontline areas, including those fleeing the besieged city of Mariupol.

Officials have said that over 100,000 people have already been evacuated from cities in Ukraine.

But in a number of cities, Russian shellings have prevented or slowed the evacuation of civilians.