VANCOUVER – It might not be reflected in recent results, but the Vancouver Canucks believe they are finally heading in the right direction.

The Canucks played a good first period, then showed some fight when down two goals in the third, before losing 4-2 to the Toronto Maple Leafs in NHL play Saturday night.

Despite having just one win in their last 13 games (1-11-1), head coach Manny Malhotra sees the team making progress.

“It’s not closer to where we need to be, or need to get to, but there is progress,” said the first-year NHL bench boss. “It’s frustrating as we talk about these games loss after loss. But we do see improvement in different areas of our game. It’s just tough to see those when there’s no correlation to wins.”

Auston Matthews scored his team-leading 11th goal of the season as the Leafs halted a two-game losing skid.

William Nylander and Teddy Blueger both had a goal and an assist. Zack MacEwen also scored for Toronto (8-6-2), which wrapped up a four-game road trip (2-2-0).

Brock Boeser, on the power play, and Max Sasson scored for the Canucks (3-12-1).

Canucks goaltender Leevi Merilainen made 24 saves.

Leafs goalie Anthony Stolarz stopped 26 shots and also earned an assist on Blueger’s empty-net goal.

Vancouver played well in the first period, with Boeser scoring on a breakaway to tie the score 1-1.

The Leafs controlled most of the second period with Matthews and MacEwen scoring. Sasson made things interesting early in the third, drawing the Canucks to within a goal by scoring off the rebound of a Brendan Gallagher shot.

After losing games by five, three and four goals earlier in the year, Vancouver has tightened up defensively. Six of their last eight losses have been by two goals or less.

“I think our team has played a lot better hockey of late,” said Boeser, who scored his fifth goal of the year. “It’s something we can build on.

“We’re generating more shots and I think our defensive game is coming along and getting better. You’ve got to look at the little things. As long as those are improving, then we’ve got to build off those. We’ve got to stick with the process here.”

Malhotra liked the Canucks’ forecheck in the first period and the way the team was able to sustain offensive zone pressure. Vancouver also received strong goaltending from Merilainen, especially when he stopped first-overall pick Gavin McKenna on a power-play chance in the first period.

“Every game he’s played this year he’s given us an opportunity to win,” said Malhotra. “He’s made some incredible stops.”

After missing the playoffs the last two years, and finishing last overall last season, the Canucks knew they faced a rebuild this campaign.

Malhotra said the coaching staff tries to highlight the positive.

“As coaches it’s very easy to watch video and point out all the negatives but you’ve got to catch them doing it,” he said. “When there are positives we tend to praise those things and celebrate those things and hope we see more of them.”

Sasson said staying positive in the dressing room isn’t always easy.

“It’s tough,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of good guys in this room, a lot of guys that want it. You’ve just got to stick with it, stick with the process. It’s super cliché but that’s all you can do.

“You keep getting yourself in tight games … and limit their scoring chances and (you’ll) turn this thing around.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

VANCOUVER – Auston Matthews collected his team-leading 11th goal of the season as the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Vancouver Canucks 4-2 Saturday to snap a two-game NHL skid.

William Nylander and Teddy Blueger both had a goal and an assist, while Zack MacEwen also scored for Toronto (8-6-2), which wrapped up a four-game road trip with two wins and two losses.

Brock Boeser, on the power play, and Max Sasson scored for the Canucks (3-12-1) who have one win in their last 13 games.

Canucks goaltender Leevi Merilainen made 24 saves.

Leafs goalie Anthony Stolarz stopped 26 shots and also earned an assist on Blueger’s empty net goal.

Sasson made things interesting early in the third, drawing the Canucks to within a goal by scoring off the rebound of a Brendan Gallagher shot.

Matthews gave the Leafs a 2-1 lead at 3:47 of the second period, beating Merilainen on the short side after a pretty back-and-forth pass with defenceman Darren Raddysh.

McEwen put Toronto up two goals during a scramble at 12:34.

The teams exchanged first-period breakaway goals.

Nylander opening the scoring with the game just 83 seconds old. He scooped up a puck that bounced off Canuck defenceman Jamie Oleksiak’s stick, skated in alone and lifted a backhand past Merilainen.

Boeser tied the game about nine minutes later. With the Canucks on a power play he got behind the Toronto defence, he took a long pass on the fly from defenceman Filip Hronek and beat Stolarz.

TAKEAWAYS

Canucks: Merilainen robbed rookie Gavin McKenna on a power play in the first period. Parked at the side of the net McKenna took a cross-ice pass from centre Jack Roslovic but Merilainen got a pad on his shot. … Centre Jacob Quillan, acquired Oct. 15 in a trade from Toronto, was inserted into the lineup after being recalled from Abbotsford of the AHL on Friday to replace Filip Chytil who was placed on injured reserve after reaggravating a shoulder injury in a 3-2 loss at the San Jose Sharks on Thursday. … Centre Elias Pettersson saw a six-game point streak end (2G, 5A).

Leafs: Roslovic earned an assist on Matthews goal, extending his points streak to six games (3G, 7A). … Toronto has just 28 wins in 86 games playing in Vancouver. … Former Canuck defenceman Chris Tanev and forward Dakota Joshua returned to the lineup. Joshua was playing his first game of the season after suffering a core injury late last year. Tanev missed nine games with an upper-body injury sustained Oct. 10 at Colorado. … Blueger, who spent three seasons with the Canucks, played in his first game in Vancouver since signing a two-year contract with the Leafs.

KEY MOMENT

MacEwen’s goal came when he took a shot from just inside the blue line that went off Merilainen’s glove, hit defenceman Luke Schenn on the back, then rolled into the net.

KEY STAT

Matthews has points in six of his last seven games (5G, 5A).

UP NEXT

Maple Leafs: Host the Utah Mammoth on Tuesday.

Canucks: Host the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

VANCOUVER – Heads hung in the B.C. Lions’ locker room at halftime on Saturday.

With their season on the line, the team was behind 17-13 and in need of a comeback against the defending Grey Cup champion Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Luckily for the Lions, adversity is nothing new.

“I think with what we’ve been through this year, I think this isn’t uncharted territory for us,” said quarterback Nathan Rourke. “We know that when things aren’t going our way, that we’re capable of climbing out the hole, right?”

The B.C. squad that started the season 1-5 rallied with nine wins over its next 10 games to clinch a spot in the CFL playoffs.

On Saturday, the team rallied once again, overcoming a 14-point deficit to beat the Riders 33-26 in the West Division semifinal.

“We knew our defence was still going to keep playing well, special teams were going to make their plays,” said Rourke, who connected on 21 of his 32 pass attempts for 366 yards with three touchdowns.

“And offensively, we just had to remember what we’re capable of and just try to string a couple of plays together and try to get into a rhythm.”

The Lions will travel to face the Edmonton Elks (13-5) in the West Division final on Nov. 7.

The East semifinal earlier on Saturday saw the Winnipeg Blue Bombers stun the Argonauts with a 25-22 comeback victory in Toronto.

The Bombers will take on the host Montreal Alouettes in the East final on Nov. 7. Calgary hosts the Grey Cup on Nov. 15.

For Saskatchewan, it was a painful end to the season.

“You want to win a championship every single year. Of course you do,” said Riders quarterback Trevor Harris, who logged 309 passing yards with one interception. “And so when you come up short it sucks, it hurts. You can’t lie about that.

“You have aspirations to accomplish more. And a game like this is one that’ll keep you up at night. But it’ll drive you for improvement and the ways to get better.”

The Riders and Lions came in with identical 10-8 regular-season records, but B.C. earned the right to host by winning the season head-to-head series 2-1.

A turnover on downs proved costly for the Lions midway through the second.

The Riders got the ball at their own 49-yard line and worked it up the field over six plays, capping the drive with Tommy Stevens muscling his way into the end zone. Saskatchewan opted to go for the two-point convert and Harris made good, connecting with Samuel Emilus to give his side a 17-3 advantage.

It was the visitors’ lone major of the night.

“We had an opportunity, man,” said Riders head coach Corey Mace. “Proud of those guys. They fought until the very last second.”

B.C. replied to the touchdown with Rourke scrambling out of the pocket and lobbing a rainbow up the field to an unmarked Stanley Berryhill, who dashed over the goal line for the major. Sean Whyte’s kick for the extra point was good, cutting the Lions’ deficit to 17-10.

The play showed how special Rourke is as a player, said Lions head coach Buck Pierce.

“He never ceases to amaze me,” said Pierce, himself a former CFL quarterback. “That play right there, you just look at the effort, the will he had to get something going for the offence, get something going for the team. And it ignited the crowd, it ignited the sideline. … He’s just a phenomenal player that makes plays that I haven’t seen in a long time.”

B.C. went into halftime down 17-13 and Cottoy said “a couple guys’ heads were down.”

“A lot of us knew that we weren’t playing our best football, and we were still (only) down four points. In the playoffs, that’s huge,” said the Canadian receiver. “And we just had to make sure we took advantage of it in that second half, right?”

Asked what was said in the room during the break, Pierce said the players were simply reminded they’d been in tough situations before.

“It’s a resilient group,” he said. “Maybe more resilient than any other group I’ve been a part of in terms of understanding where we are and how we need to respond. And I think that’s a belief in everybody. And I think more than anything it was just relaying that message once again.”

Rourke orchestrated more highlight-reel plays in the third quarter. The first came off a quick dish to Jevon Cottoy, who split the Saskatchewan defence and sprinted up the field for a 70-yard touchdown that levelled the score at 20-20.

The Riders added another three points with Brett Lauther’s fifth field goal of the night before Rourke found an open Cottoy steps from the end zone.

He reeled in the pass and took a few strides in for his second major of the game, putting the Lions up 27-23 at the end of the quarter.

Rourke was quick to credit the Lions’ defence for the victory, though.

“They’ve been incredible all year,” he said, adding that he felt his offence didn’t play at their best at times on Saturday.

“But our defence was able to win it for us. And that’s a testament to how great they’ve been and how crucial they’ve been to this football team.”

B.C. and Saskatchewan traded field goals across the fourth and final frame.

Whyte’s 34-yard kick boosted B.C.’s lead to seven points midway through the quarter and the veteran kicker added another from 24 yards with three minutes left on the game clock.

The Riders clawed three points back in the final two minutes of the game when Lauther made a 44-yard field goal to put the score at 33-26.

Whyte’s 49-yard attempt field goal fell short with 49 seconds to go, giving Saskatchewan’s offence one last chance, but the green and white stalled out at B.C.’s 34-yard line.

The loss hung in the air of the Riders’ locker room after the game, said defensive back Tevaughn Campbell.

“It hurt, for lack of a better term,” he said. “It really showed. You could see it on guys’ faces. You could feel the emotion in the room. It just sucks.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Alberta’s chief electoral officer is suggesting in a letter to legislature Speaker Ric McIver that the province’s next general election should be held with the current electoral boundaries, or be postponed.

Gordon McClure says in the letter to McIver, which was shared by the Opposition NDP, that either way, Elections Alberta will get sufficient time to execute the provincial election, currently scheduled for Oct. 18, 2027, with integrity and safeguards in place.

McClure’s recommendations come ahead of a contentious report on new electoral boundaries being released next week.

“I urge all Members to consider the time required for implementation as deliberations concerning electoral boundaries proceed,” McClure said in the letter, which was dated Friday.

“A timely and definitive resolution, together with an appropriate contingency plan should additional time be required, is essential to protecting the readiness and successful delivery of Alberta’s next Provincial General Election.”

The letter is also addressed to Alberta MLAs.

McClure said there’s already friction over the new boundaries suggested in the forthcoming report, which has been put before an all-party legislative committee and is set to be tabled in the legislature on

Monday, and those disagreements could create delays.

He said a typical provincial vote requires up to 18 months of preparations, and the agency has been stretched thin in recent months, for reasons including the referendum on separation earlier this month.

The report was already the subject of a heated debate in the legislature this past week.

Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi said, after being briefed on it, that it gerrymanders ridings in two cities in southern Alberta — Lethbridge and Calgary.

Gerrymandering is a tactic that sees voting districts designed not to reflect geography or population patterns but to concentrate or fragment voters to benefit a particular political party.

Two members on the committee behind the report said the suggested ridings draw a line between rural and urban voters.

Recent provincial elections have seen the UCP dominate in rural areas and smaller cities, while the NDP has controlled Edmonton. The two have battled for advantage in Calgary.

Nenshi said if those boundaries are redrawn after passing a legislature vote, NDP support would dilute in favour of the UCP. He said his party would challenge the ridings in court on constitutional grounds.

The Constitution protects voters’ rights to effective representation.

Nenshi also said the report suggests the panel in charge of drafting new boundaries appeared to receive instructions from the government and wasn’t independent.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith accused Nenshi of questioning the integrity of judges, including Brian O’Ferrall, a former judge and the chair of the panel responsible for the redraw.

Smith also denied accusations from the NDP that her government is pulling strings to manipulate the vote in her favour.

She told Nenshi to quit complaining and begin campaigning.

A call for a new report and panel reviewing boundaries came after a previous bipartisan boundary commission was split in its recommendations after months of public consultations.

The justice minister’s office responded on Saturday that it is reviewing McClure’s letter and will have more to say once the review is complete.

The NDP remained vocal ahead ahead of the weekend.

“For months, the Alberta NDP Caucus has been warning against UCP attempts to violate the democratic rights of Albertans and bring in election maps only meant to deliver a win for the UCP in the next election no matter what voters want,” Nenshi said in a statement Friday.

“Now Elections Alberta says they just don’t have enough time to implement the UCP’s rigged map in time for the … fixed election date — a date already extended by Danielle Smith to give herself six more months in power.”

In 2024, Smith’s government moved the fixed election date every four years from May to October, in order to avoid clashing with major natural disasters like wildfires or floods.

—With files from Lisa Johnson and Jack Farrell

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Head coach Mike O’Shea is good with people feeling the Winnipeg Blue Bombers stole the East Division semifinal.

Dru Brown’s 23-yard TD pass to Nic Demski with 44 seconds remaining rallied Winnipeg past the Toronto Argonauts 25-22 on Saturday despite committing four turnovers. Brown then found Demski for the two-point convert.

“Yeah, if that’s how you want to frame it,” O’Shea said. “I think what’s really important about this one is that idea, that concept of throughout a course of a game one phase might not be rolling and it’s up to the other two phases to have their back.

“I thought this was a great example of that.”

Winnipeg will travel to Montreal for the East final next weekend. The Alouettes dispatched the Bombers 42-33 in last year’s division semifinal but the two teams split their ’26 season series 1-1

Toronto’s defence registered two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. With 2:07 remaining, the Argos chose to punt on third-and-one from their 45-yard line, giving Winnipeg possession at its 24 with 1:54 remaining.

“The defence did a great job forcing field goals and I think they’ll be disappointed,” O’Shea said. “I think they’re happy right now and then they’ll watch the film and say there’s a couple of times we were off the field and we kept them on.

“That’s the standard they hold themselves to.”

Ironically, Winnipeg’s game-winning march was set up by former Argo Thiadric Hansen’s recovery of Janarion Grant’s fumble on a punt return.

“Janarion Grant is a Hall of Fame returner and those things happen to Hall of Fame returners,” O’Shea said of Grant, a former Bomber. “Nobody, not even me, understands what it’s like to be running this way as fast as you can and having 12 guys running at you the opposite way as fast as they can.

“Knowing Janarion – he’s a great human being and great teammate – this will bug him but he’s one of the best that you guys have ever seen in this league.”

Brown was 18-of-30 passing for 206 yards with two TDs and two interceptions. He got the start after relieving starter Zach Collaros (ribs) in last week’s playoff-clinching 34-10 win over B.C.

“We’ve got a lot of guys that have played a lot of football in this league and know how funky it can get,” Brown said. “As long as you’re within striking distance you always have a chance.

“No one ever comes in with the intent to turn over the ball … but those things happen and if you shut down or get gun shy then that’s 1,000 per cent how you lose. You have to continue to shoot.”

Collaros was listed as questionable for Saturday’s game. O’Shea said he’ll wait until later next week to determine who’ll start in Montreal but praised Brown.

“His demeanour, how calm he is in the huddle, how prepared he is throughout the week allows him to throw that ball at the end of the game even though the game didn’t go the way he wanted up to that point,” O’Shea said. “That’s why a guy like that can be successful because he’s not going to lose his opportunity because of his emotions.”

Toronto head coach Mike Miller said he pondered gambling on third down but opted to punt after the officials moved the ball back, making it closer to two yards for the first down. Ultimately, though, Miller felt the Argos’ inability to score TDs off their forced turnovers was costly.

“Probably, ultimately the difference in the game,” said Miller, also Toronto’s offensive co-ordinator. “One more touchdown probably changes the whole dynamic there at the end.

“Gut punch? Sure. You’ve got to play all four quarters, you’ve got to play till the end with all three phases. It’s just unfortunate.”

Toronto starter Chad Kelly left with just over nine minutes remaining with an apparent right shoulder injury. Kelly finished 18-of-30 passing for 193 yards and a TD before a season-high 21,786 spectators at BMO Field on a gorgeous fall afternoon.

Nick Arbuckle completed two-of-six passes for 25 yards. Miller said while he didn’t know the full extent of Kelly’s injury he understood Kelly couldn’t return.

Lirim Hajrullahu’s 41-yard field goal at 2:37 gave Toronto a 22-17 lead.

Winnipeg is the 14th crossover team — all from the West — since the CFL adopted the format in 1996. Those teams have a 6-8 all-time record in the East playoffs, and none have reached the Grey Cup.

David Reese and Ontaria Wilson had Winnipeg’s touchdowns. Sergio Castillo added two converts and a field goal.

Tyler Kahmann scored Toronto’s touchdown. Hajrullahu booted the convert and five field goals.
Reese’s 52-yard fumble return TD at 14:22 of the third pulled Winnipeg to within 19-17. Defensive lineman Michael Fletcher knocked the ball from Kelly, who’d dropped back to pass.

It came after Winnipeg drove to the Toronto 31 before Tim White fumbled while being hit by Alex Teubner. Lemon had his second recovery, returning it 22 yards.

Hajrullahu had a 10-yard field goal at 5:38.

Toronto forced two interceptions and one fumble but only mustered three field goals for the 16-10 halftime lead.

Hajrullahu gave Toronto its six-point lead with a 28-yard field goal at 14:18 of the second quarter. It was set up by Lemon’s 23-yard return of Brown’s fumble off Soane Toia’s sack.

Hajrullahu’s 37-yard field goal at 12:40 put Toronto ahead 13-10 following Dathan Hickey’s interception at the Argos’ 16-yard line. Castillo had made it 10-10 with a 42-yard field goal at 6:48.

Hajrullahu’s 42-yard boot nine seconds in put Toronto ahead 10-7. It was set up by DaShaun Amos’ 19-yard interception return.

Kahmann’s 20-yard TD grab made it 7-7 at 12:48 of the first. Wilson’s sensational one-handed 32-yard TD grab at 2:54 opened the scoring.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

The U.S. Embassy in Moscow has issued an alert regarding a threat of a “mass casualty event” at the Tsaritsyno Museum Reserve in Moscow.

In a statement posted to its website, the embassy said the threat is “credible” and advised everyone to avoid the area and avoid crowds.

Global Affairs Canada (GAC) repeated the alert Saturday, warning against all travel to Russia as a result of the conflict with Ukraine and “risk of terrorism.”

“If you are in Russia, you should consider leaving the country by commercial means. If you remain in Russia, maintain a low profile. Canadians holding Russian citizenship may be subject to call-up for mandatory military service,” the GAC said.

The armed conflict with Ukraine has resulted in military activity within Russia’s borders. The GAC said attacks are most common near the Russian-Ukrainian border, notably in Bryansk, Kursk and Belgorod oblasts, and in the Black Sea region including Rostov Oblast and Krasnodar Krai.

Government buildings, schools, cultural venues, places of worship, airports and tourist attractions have also become the target of terrorist activity, they said.

Evacuees from Russia-occupied Oleshky crossed into Ukrainian-held territory Saturday as part of a major rescue operation carried out under a ceasefire in the southern Kherson region began early Tuesday.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Demonstrators are rallying against pesticides with a “die-in” protest in Montreal.

Attendees, many in costume for Halloween, sought to drive home the message that “pesticides kill” with an event in front of Health Canada’s offices downtown on Saturday.

Participants lay on the ground in front of the Guy-Favreau complex as others dressed in white coveralls moved through the crowd pretending to spray pesticides.

Children were invited to trace chalk outlines of pretend victims, while organizers placed a cardboard coffin and tombstones in front of the building, each bearing the names of various diseases.

Thibault Rehn, executive director of Vigilance OGM, which helped organize the protest, says it was calling out “historic setbacks” by the federal government, particularly legislation passed in June that allows cabinet to override Health Canada and authorize the use of banned pesticides.

Similar protests in the province on Saturday were planned for Quebec City, Sherbrooke, Saguenay, Terrebonne, Blainville and Val-David as well as Ottawa.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Four people are dead and two others are in hospital following a single-vehicle collision early Saturday morning south of Guelph, Ont.

Wellington OPP, fire and paramedic services responded to reports of the collision on Watson Road South between Maltby Road East and Wellington Road 34 shortly after 1:30 a.m. Saturday.

Details of the collision are sparse but police said six people were inside the vehicle at the time.

Four people were pronounced dead at the scene and the other two were transported to hospital with life-threatening injuries, police said.

As the investigation continues, Watson Road South remains closed.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — An aging NASA telescope is barely clinging to space after a failed rescue effort left it tottering lower and lower.

The U.S. Space Force predicts the Swift Observatory will come crashing down on or around Friday.

Most of the 1 1/2-ton telescope is expected to burn up in the atmosphere. But a handful of pieces made of denser-than-lead tungsten and some mirror parts could survive reentry, according to NASA’s Brad Cenko, the mission’s chief scientist.

Any surviving wreckage will most likely plunge into the ocean. But swaths of Africa, Australia, India, Southeast Asia, and Central and South America are within the reentry zone. The Space Force is tracking the telescope’s dwindling path.

Its cosmic cremation has the Swift team mourning yet full of gratitude for the observations the telescope made during its 22 years in orbit. Swift blasted off on Nov. 20, 2004, to search for some of the biggest explosions in the universe: gamma ray bursts and supernovas.

“We’ve known this day would come since before Swift was launched. At least in low-Earth orbit, what goes up must come down. And that end is catastrophic,” said Pennsylvania State University’s John Nousek, an astronomer who led the control team.

Intense solar activity over the past few years dragged Swift down faster than usual. NASA hired Katalyst Space a year ago to mount a rush rescue. But the company’s three-armed robot named Link ran into trouble after launching in July and got no closer than 7 miles to 9 miles (12 kilometers to 15 kilometers) to the telescope. Link plunged back to Earth in September.

Swift resumed observations once the rescue attempt was called off, discovering even more gamma ray bursts and other ultrahigh-energy events. But by late October, the telescope was too low to remain steady for observations, and its systems were shut down.

Its final tally: more than 2,000 gamma ray bursts and 1,400 exploding stars, not to mention a slew of comets, asteroids and star-shredding black holes. The telescope’s superpower was its ability to swivel swiftly — thus its name — toward erupting celestial events.

NASA considered Swift a first responder for the Hubble and Webb space telescopes and others that would follow its alerts and provide deeper investigations. Scientists are still figuring out how to fill the gap.

“Our fervent hope is that the lessons learned by the successes of Swift can be applied to new generations of space missions to accelerate our discoveries about the universe,” Nousek said in an email.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

CHERNIHIV REGION, Ukraine (AP) — Evacuees from Russian-occupied Oleshky crossed into Ukrainian-held territory Saturday in a major rescue operation carried out under the most significant truce since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine 4 1/2 years ago.

Evacuees, who traveled by bus and plane through Russia and Belarus, stepped off buses at the Ukrainian-Belarusian border where they reunited with family members, some wrapped in blue and yellow Ukrainian flags. Volunteers with hand-drawn welcome signs handed out coffee to the weary travelers.

One evacuee, Tetiana Leonidivna, 71, thanked the Ukrainian soldiers who helped her escape.

“We love them, we love them,” she said through tears. “We know that they are protecting us. And a deep bow to them, and a deep bow to their parents, for having such children. I am proud, I am simply proud.”

The ceasefire in Ukraine’s southern Kherson region began early Tuesday and is expected to continue through Sunday evening. The White House has said U.S. first lady Melania Trump helped to broker the localized deal, while Pope Leo XIV also pressed Russian and Ukrainian leaders to allow aid deliveries and civilian evacuations.

Relatives and volunteers with the Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders and World Central Kitchen welcomed the evacuees as they arrived at the border, ready to provide aid and food, including for their pets.

Holding a cigarette between shaking fingers, 48-year-old Ivan Yevhenovych described his last few months in Oleshky.

“It was very difficult. There were a lot of drones; it was hard to move around the streets,” he said. “Since spring, there hasn’t really been any staple food left. People had a little bit of their own reserves. We are thrifty people.”

He said people were being killed by landmines or drone strikes every day.

An estimated 2,000 people were still living in Oleshky when the temporary truce took hold. They were offered the choice of being evacuated to Ukrainian- or Russian-held territory, or remaining in the city with replenished food and medical supplies.

“Many people stayed behind and didn’t want to leave,” Yevhenovych said. “Some for their houses, some for their animals.”

Ukrainian authorities, seeking to protect those who remained and safeguard future humanitarian missions, have not said how many residents evacuated Oleshky and have restricted details of their route.

Melania Trump posted on social media Friday that the humanitarian convoy could safely evacuate more than 750 people.

Liza Paliy, 19, waited at the border for her father, whom she last saw more than 2 1/2 years earlier when she fled the occupied city with her mother and sister.

“We thought at that time that it would be a month, two maximum, and we would return, but unfortunately, two years have already passed,” she said.

Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, hailed the success of the humanitarian mission.

“This is an extremely important moment. Behind us are difficult negotiations, agreements, preparations, and an enormous amount of work. But most importantly, the people who waited so long to be rescued are finally safe,” he said in an online post.

Lubinets said evacuees ranged in age from just over a year old to 94, and they brought pets, including dogs, cats, a parrot and a raccoon. He said he hoped the Oleshky truce can be replicated elsewhere.

“This experience could form the basis of a new mechanism for responding to the most difficult humanitarian crises — one that always puts people, their safety, and their right to life at its center,” he said.

Some Oleshky evacuees who chose to move to Russian-occupied territory have been taken to a temporary shelter in Simferopol, said Yana Lantratova, Russia’s human rights commissioner. The city is in Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow annexed in 2014.

“After everything they have endured and a long journey, it is essential for these people to rest, recover, and feel cared for. However, support should not be limited to just a roof over their heads and a hot meal,” she said in a social media post.

“There are many challenges ahead: replacing lost documents, medical treatment, arranging long-term housing, and reconnecting with family members. My office will assist in addressing these issues.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday welcomed U.S. approval of Ukraine’s purchase of 500 PAC-3 Patriot interceptors but urged partners to also supply weapons from existing stocks, saying the newly authorized U.S. weapons could take years to arrive.

“Right now, the Russians are attacking our energy infrastructure every single day. In just these past two weeks of October, there have already been more than 30 Russian strikes on critical parts of our power grid,” Zelenskyy wrote on X.

The Trump administration said Friday that it had approved a proposed $2.1 billion sale of Patriot air defense interceptors, after Kyiv had accused the Pentagon of delaying deliveries of the vital munition needed to stop Russian ballistic missiles.

The State Department said 500 Patriot missiles would be purchased for Ukraine with donations from Canada, Germany and Norway through a U.S. program and that no American funds were involved.

Meanwhile, a Ukrainian drone attack killed a 30-year-old woman and a 41-year-old man in Russia’s western Bryansk region, local Gov. Yegor Kovalchuk said Saturday. Five others were wounded, he said.

Local officials also reported Ukrainian drone attacks in the Russian republic of Bashkortostan. Russian media outlets said there was a fire in the region’s capital, Ufa, home to several oil refineries.

The Russian Defense Ministry said Saturday its forces had shot down 433 Ukrainian drones overnight.

Zelenskyy said Moscow launched drone attacks on energy and railway infrastructure across Ukraine overnight, leaving 280,000 households in Dnipro and Kyiv regions without power.

The attacks targeted combined heat and power plants in Kyiv and Sumy regions, four electricity substations and a gas distribution facility in the Dnipro region and railway infrastructure in Dnipro and Kharkiv, he said, adding that repair crews were working to restore power.

Zelenskyy urged partners to impose further sanctions on Russia and provide new support packages to Ukraine.

“The world sees Russia targeting civilian infrastructure every day. Everyone who does not want to see this Russian escalation spread further into Europe must help Ukraine,” he said in an online post.
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Associated Press journalists Dan Bashakov in Chernihiv Region, Ukraine; Susie Blann in Kyiv; and Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England, contributed.

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