Ukraine claims it shot down a second Russian A-50 radar plane

A week after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the city of Odessa was barricaded. Checkpoints are set up along the streets and arteries of the city center known for its 19th-century architecture.^E century, his operas and his Potemkin CDs.

This city on the Black Sea is strategic. This is one of Vladimir Putin’s objectives in crushing and conquering Ukraine: to get his hands on its port, from which millions of tons of grain are released that finance the country’s economy.

Odessa is now a ghost town. It’s freezing cold out there. Restaurants and storefronts are, for the most part, closed. I arrived on the 1st^er March passed, on foot, across the Moldovan border, encountering thousands of Ukrainians fleeing in the other direction. Cars full of children and women. An image of defeat. At that moment, no one imagined that the Ukrainian army could resist the power of the Russian army, which was rapidly advancing towards Kiev.

So Odessa becomes empty. Every day, blue and yellow trains are responsible for evacuating civilians who want to flee, leaving room for tearful farewells: in the name of general mobilization, men aged 18 to 60 are obliged to stay on the territory to face the Russians. the invader

That day, I decided to spend some time at the station talking about this heartbreak. I meet a family who are settling in the train. With their agreement, I will stay by their side until departure. I am silent and discreet so as not to spoil this last moment between them. I am very motivated.

This man comes with his mother, his wife and their 3 month old son. As the train prepares to leave the platform, the long minutes during which they face each other, in silence, through the window, are overwhelming. the tears The words fell on the lips. Hands on windows to pretend they can still touch each other. No one knows when they will meet again.

These scenes are happening all over Ukraine. On every station platform, in front of every train, in front of every departing bus. Families are separated out of urgency and fear and flee the region by the millions. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that more than 7 million refugees from the country are registered in Europe.

This photo will be published on the front page of the newspaper the next day. After that, I received many messages on social networks. Some wanted to find family, in vain.

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