DONETSK. Feb 18 (Interfax) - The self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) has begun civilian evacuation, with 225 orphans from boarding school No.1 in Donetsk being the first to be evacuated, an Interfax correspondent reported from the scene on Friday.
The children were lined up in front of the school and are now boarding coaches.
The mass evacuation to Rostov region was announced earlier by DPR leader Denis Pushilin who said that Kyiv was preparing to launch an offensive in the region.