Marioupol: Ukrainian authorities hope for further evacuations

The continuation of evacuations of Mariupol residents is scheduled for Monday morning, after a first operation that brought a hundred civilians out of the Azovstal factory, besieged by Russian forces in this strategic port in southeastern Ukraine. "On May 2, evacuation to Mariupol begins at 07:00 (04:00 GMT). Collection point - Shopping Center +Port City+", announced on Telegram Pavlo Kirilenko, regional governor of Donetsk, on the night of Sunday to Monday. The evacuation operation began on Saturday and was carried out in coordination between Ukraine, Russia and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). It first concerned civilians present in the basements of the huge Azovstal steel plant.

"Today, for the first time since the beginning of the war, this vital humanitarian corridor has begun to function. For the first time, there have been two days of real ceasefire on this territory" of the steel complex, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday evening in a message broadcast by video. "Finally!" "More than a hundred civilians have already been evacuated, first of all women and children," the president said, adding that the first evacuees would arrive in Zaporizhzhia, a city west of Mariupol, on Monday morning. Zelensky added that he "hopes that the conditions will be met to continue the evacuations from Mariupol".

Russia is not aiming for the end of the war in Ukraine on May 9 (Lavrov)

Russia is not seeking to end the war in Ukraine on May 9, celebrated as Victory Day, its foreign minister said, as analysts estimated a possible end to the conflict on that date. any date, including Victory Day," Sergey Lavrov said in an interview with Italian television Mediaset broadcast on Sunday, referring to that date commemorating May 9, 1945 and the surrender of the Nazis to the Allies. including the Soviet Union. "The pace of the operation in Ukraine depends, above all, on the need to minimize possible risks to the civilian population and the Russian military," he added. Thousands of civilians have been killed in Ukraine and millions displaced by the Russian invasion, which began on February 24.

IN BRIEF

The playwright and former business leader Michel Vinaver, who had notably transposed the Bettencourt case to the theater, died Sunday in Paris at the age of 95, announced to AFP his daughter, the actress Anouk Grinberg.

Australian airline Qantas announced on Monday that it will launch the world's first non-stop commercial flights from Sydney to London and New York by the end of 2025.

Marseille, swept by Lyon (3-0) in the shock of the 35th day of Ligue 1, sees its competitors Rennes and Monaco get closer to its second place, while Nice, winner in Bordeaux (1-0), remains in contact with the podium.

The French striker of the Monterrey Tigers André-Pierre Gignac finished Sunday top scorer of the 2022 closing tournament of the Mexican Championship with 11 goals, for the 3rd time in his career.