People from the occupied territories were taken to Melitopol on May 9, locals are trying to leave the city en masse

The Russian military failed to celebrate May 9 in occupied Melitopol. People continue to flee the occupation, although it is difficult: a column of people who left Melitopol for Zaporizhzhia came under fire again.

The mayor Ivan Fedorov reported about it live.

"Last night they made a statement that today it is dangerous to go out into the city to celebrate May 9, because someone from Ukraine is planning to carry out some provocations. This is nonsense, of course, because the occupiers wanted a provocation in order to accuse the Ukrainian authorities of it," Fedorov said.

More than 60% of citizens left Melitopol. This means that between 60,000 and 70,000 residents have left the temporarily occupied city.

"Today there is a big demand for evacuation from Melitopol, but the Russian occupiers have not been agreeing with the city authorities on the green corridor for more than a month. People get to Zaporizhzhia by private transport, and this is a real challenge," the mayor of Melitopol stressed.

• Today, Russians are trying to hold mass celebrations on May 9 in the occupied territories. In Kherson oblast, they forced locals to hold rallies, lay flowers at monuments, and hold holiday concerts to film propaganda stories for Russian television. Probably people from the previously occupied territories also took part in the events.
• In ruined Mariupol, the occupiers and collaborators staged a 300-meter St. George ribbon procession. The leader of the so-called "Donetsk Peopleʼs Republic" Pushylin took part in the procession.