MARIUPOL, Ukraine 

At least 65 Turkish citizens and their relatives have been evacuated from the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol, a local official said Thursday.

Turkish citizens and their relatives were trapped at shelters and homes in the city, as well as at the Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent Mosque in Mariupol, Ismail Hacioglu, head of the mosque's administration, told Anadolu Agency.

He said evacuation buses that were supposed to pick up Turkish nationals were unable to enter Mariupol as Russian attacks continued Thursday.

“The Turkish Foreign Ministry notified the Russian Foreign Ministry about the evacuation of Turkish nationals. That’s why the area where our mosque is located was not bombed,” he said.

“Those who had access to vehicles left the city using the area where our mosque is located. So far, 65 Turkish citizens and their relatives have left today.”

He said people leaving Mariupol were heading to the southeastern Zaporizhzhia city.

“Efforts are underway to evacuate 87 more Turkish citizens and their relatives from Mariupol,” said Hacioglu.

News of the evacuation of Turkish nationals came hours after Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said Turkiye was in contact with Russia and Ukraine for the safe evacuation of its nationals from Ukraine, especially Mariupol.

A day earlier, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu brought up the issue in his meeting with Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow.

He told Lavrov that helping Turkish nationals leave the city was a “priority” for Ankara.