The governor of Lugansk Province, Sergey Gaidai, reported that 60 people were killed and at least 30 wounded in the bombing by Russian forces on a school in the west of the province, while the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the targeting of 3 military airports in southern Ukraine.

Gaidai said that the death toll was likely to rise because people were under the rubble, noting that the bombing targeted a school in the Belogrovsky village of Lyschansk.

He explained that the bombing resulted from a raid carried out by a Russian fighter on a school in the village where its residents sought refuge from the Russian bombing.

In a related context, Al-Jazeera correspondent in Kramatorsk said that Russian raids targeted a suburb of the city, causing injuries and destroying a number of buildings.

Over the past four days, Russian forces intensified their bombing of the city, located in the Ukrainian-controlled part of Donetsk region.


targeting airports

On the other hand, the Russian Defense Ministry announced the targeting of 3 Ukrainian military airports in the south of the country, using long-range missiles launched from the air and sea.

A spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, Igor Konashenkov, indicated that the Air Force destroyed huge warehouses, which he said were storing Western weapons in Kharkiv Province, using Iskander missiles.

The ministry also announced the destruction of 3 ammunition and fuel depots in Odessa and the death of more than 280 people among what it described as Ukrainian nationalists.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu had warned a few days ago that any NATO transport carrying weapons or military equipment to meet the needs of the Ukrainian armed forces would be a legitimate target for the Russian army.

Al-Jazeera correspondent also reported that Odessa International Airport was targeted with a missile strike.

Meanwhile, the Odessa Military Administration confirmed that the Russian forces targeted the district with 4 cruise missiles, without recording casualties as a result of the bombing so far.

In the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine, Russian media reported that Ukrainian forces bombed the railway tracks in the city of Yasinovataya in the separatist-controlled Donetsk region.

Those media broadcast pictures of what they said was a fire at the train station as a result of the Ukrainian strikes.


evacuating civilians

In Mariupol, the Russian Defense Ministry announced the completion of the process of evacuating civilians from the Azovstal industrial complex, where Russian forces are besieging elements of the Ukrainian army and the Azov battalion holed up inside.

The ministry said in a statement, that the humanitarian operation to evacuate civilians from the Azovstal complex was completed with the active participation of representatives of the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

She added in a statement that since last Thursday, 51 people, including 11 children, have been rescued, noting that civilians have been evacuated to temporary shelters.

The Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine announced the end of the process of evacuating all children, women and the elderly from the Azovstal complex in Mariupol.

For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that his country's authorities are also trying to get fighters out of the Azovstal complex, not only civilians, although the matter is very difficult, as he put it.

Zelensky added, in statements on his official channel on Telegram, that Kyiv is now preparing for the second stage of evacuating the wounded and medical personnel, noting that Ukrainian officials will continue to work today, Sunday, in order to open humanitarian corridors for all residents of the city of Mariupol and its surroundings.

The Ukrainian president called on his people not to ignore the warnings of a Russian military operation in the coming days.

The city of Mariupol has witnessed fierce battles since the start of the Russian war against Ukraine, due to its location on the Sea of ​​Azov.

The Russian forces took control of the entire city, except for the Azovstal steel factory, which is the last stronghold of the Ukrainian forces and resistance in Mariupol.

On February 24, Russia launched an attack on Ukraine, followed by international rejection and severe economic sanctions against Moscow, which stipulate to end its operation that Kyiv abandon plans to join military entities and remain neutral, which the latter considers an "interference" in its sovereignty.


Western meetings

Internationally, the Ukrainian president will participate Sunday in a video conference of the leaders of the Group of Seven to discuss the situation in his country.

"The eighth of May is a historic day that marks the end of World War II in Europe, which caused terror, destruction and death in Europe," said a spokeswoman for German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, adding that the war in Ukraine makes the cohesion of the Group of Seven more important than ever. .

This year Germany holds the presidency of the Group of Seven, which also includes Canada, the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Japan.

The spokeswoman indicated that this third meeting since the beginning of the year will be devoted especially to the situation in Ukraine, without giving further details.

US President Joe Biden had mentioned this meeting a few days ago, while talking about possible additional sanctions against Russia.

"We are always open to additional sanctions," he said, adding that he would discuss with the G7 members "what we will do and what we will not do."

Also on the line of Western sanctions, the 27 member states of the European Union are engaged in arduous negotiations to reach an agreement this weekend on a plan to halt Russian oil imports, a proposal that Hungary has so far rejected.

The G7 meeting is being held on the eve of the military parade on May 9 in Russia to commemorate the victory of the Soviet Union over Nazi Germany in World War II.

On Saturday, the Russian army held the last exercises of the traditional military parade in Moscow's Red Square, in the presence of soldiers who participated in the attack on Ukraine.

For days, the Ukrainian authorities have been warning of an intensification of Russian attacks as this anniversary approaches.

Oleksiy Aristovich, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, warned that the enemy is seeking to eliminate the defenders of Azovstal, and that he is trying to do this before May 9, to give a gift to Russian President Vladimir Putin.