Ukraine war live updates: Civilians reportedly leave steel plant in Mariupol

A group of civilians left the steelworks plant in Mariupol overnight, where the last Ukrainian troops are holding out in the besieged port city.

An estimated 100,000 civilians remain in the port city which has faced constant shelling since early on in the war.

Russia's offensive in the east of the country has continued as Ukrainian forces fight village by village to stall their advance.

Read the latest updates from the war in Ukraine in the blog below:

A group of civilians have left the Mariupol steelworks plant where the last Ukrainian soldiers are holding out in the besieged port city.A top official with the Azov Regiment, the Ukrainian unit defending the plant, said 20 women and children were evacuated during a cease-fire.Several Russian state media outlets reported that 25 civilians were evacuated from the plant. It was not immediately clear if they were referring to the same group of civilians."They have been transferred to an agreed place and we hope that they will be evacuated to Zaporizhzhia, in the territory controlled by Ukraine," said Sviatoslav Palamar, deputy commander of the Azov regiment, in a video on Telegram.(AFP, AP)