today at one... we are live in ukraine — from where the evacuations begin, as russia agrees to open humanitarian corridors for key cities under siege. people from the northeastern city of sumy and the town of irpin — near the capital kyiv — have a 12—hour ceasefire in which to get out. the mayor of the city of okhtyrka says the city centre has been completely destroyed. as the ukrainian president prepares to address mps in westminster via a video—link, he has this message for the world: translation: i'm staying here in kyiv, on bankova - not hiding, and i'm not afraid of anyone — as long as needed to win this war, our national war.

the energy giant shell has said it will stop buying oilfrom russia and stop all work in the country. and more than two million people have now fled ukraine — poland says it has taken 1.2 million of them across its border since the conflict began. and stay with us on bbc news for continuing coverage and analysis from our team of correspondents in the uk and around the world. good afternoon from lviv in western ukraine on day 13 of the war here.

the authorities in ukraine have begun evacuating people from the north—eastern city of sumy and the town of irpin, which is near the capital kyiv, after russia agreed to open safe escape routes. in its latest update on the invasion, the ukrainian military said the pace of the russian advance has slowed significantly. it claimed russian forces were demoralised, and starting to resort to looting, and accused them of violating international humanitarian laws. this map shows the areas — here in red — where russian forces are present, but not necessarily in control. moscow says it's opening corridors today to allow people to leave chernihiv, kyiv, sumy, kharkiv and mariupol further down in the south—east. the number of refugees keeps rising — with the un now saying more than two million people have fled ukraine. james waterhouse has sent

this report from kyiv. a this report from kyiv. possible way out from the fighting. a possible way out from the fighting. a fragile escape route from the north—eastern city of sumy. some of its quarter of a million population leaving home for a destination hundred miles away to the south. this is what they are escaping. another ukrainian city under siege. escaping. another ukrainian city undersiege. under escaping. another ukrainian city under siege. under heavy bombardment. with ordinary people caught underneath. nine people were killed yesterday, two of them were children. this is okhtyrka in the east, authorities say they were two air race that left craters. translation:— air race that left craters. translation: . ., . , translation: the centre of the city is completely — translation: the centre of the city is completely destroyed. _ translation: the centre of the city is completely destroyed. many - translation: the centre of the city is completely destroyed. many have | is completely destroyed. many have been injured. as of today we cannot find several people quite more at locations across the country are going through this. there have been

for attempts in as many days to get --eole out for attempts in as many days to get people out through _ for attempts in as many days to get people out through temporary - people out through temporary ceasefire and they have all failed. today in irpin, it holds. 150 have made it out so far but moscow has been accused of trying to block them. unlike some other major cities, kyiv isn't surrounded, so people can resupply, heat their homes or leave if they want to, but the worry is that window is shrinking. one person who says they aren't going anywhere, though, is president zelensky. translation: i am staying here in k iv, on translation: i am staying here in kyiv, on bankova, _ translation: i am staying here in kyiv, on bankova, not— translation: i am staying here in kyiv, on bankova, not hiding, - translation: i am staying here in kyiv, on bankova, not hiding, and ij kyiv, on bankova, not hiding, and i am not afraid of anyone, as long as needed to win this war, our national war. , ~ war. the fighting very much continues — war. the fighting very much continues in _ war. the fighting very much continues in this _ war. the fighting very much continues in this war. - war. the fighting very much

continues in this war. oil i war. the fighting very much - continues in this war. oil depots burn further west after being struck. the russian advance continues in the south, as well. the port city next in their sites. 2 million ukrainians have now been forced to leave their countries, according to the un. here refugees crossed the danube river. fine according to the un. here refugees crossed the danube river. one thing the unhcr will _ crossed the danube river. one thing the unhcr will support _ crossed the danube river. one thing the unhcr will support it _ crossed the danube river. one thing the unhcr will support it is - crossed the danube river. one thing the unhcr will support it is to - crossed the danube river. one thing the unhcr will support it is to set i the unhcr will support it is to set reception centres. a challenge that, given the ongoing conflict and hostilities, a lot of the supply chains have been broken so we are dependent on a lot of the age coming in from abroad, across the border here with poland, so that we have the resources to set it up. the numbers _ the resources to set it up. the numbers of— the resources to set it up. the numbers of people _ the resources to set it up. the numbers of people escaping this war will keep going up. the question of how best to help them will not go away. james waterhouse, bbc news, in kyiv. let'sjoin our chief international correspondent, lyse doucet, who's in the capital, kyiv. huge scepticism on corridors

yesterday, but people do seem to be getting out today. a small number are getting out, and every family taken to a small number are getting out, and every family ta ken to safety, ta ken away from the shelling, matters. it helps to ease what is now immense and growing suffering across this country. but i think what the united nations, what aid agencies, what most ukrainians would say, is that given the scale of this deepening humanitarian crisis, given how many people are now under fire and running out of food, there needs to be a nationwide ceasefire. a humanitarian pause as it is sometimes called in conflicts. today, yes, as you head in that report from james waterhouse, of the corridors as they are called art working. to the west of the capital kyiv in irpin, people are still

needing to leave even though there are exchanges of fire. to the east in sumy, where there are a lot of international students, they are managing to leave, but it is a city of —— map of the city of mariupol, people without heating, people are still trapped and that corridor is still trapped and that corridor is still marked by shelling. so on this, day 13 of the invasion, what is the extent of russia's campaign inside ukraine, a campaign which western military analysts say has so far failed to secure key objectives? our security correspondent, gordon corera, has this assessment. as the war in ukraine approaches two weeks, russian tactics continue to grow more brutal, raising questions about what the west can do.

we can see in red on this map the areas where russian troops are present, although they are not always in full control. despite lots of problems and their supply convoy being struck, they are making their way to the capital, kyiv, and in the south they've been making slow but steady progress. russia has issued various demands including wanting ukraine to give up territory in crimea and the east, to give up on plans tojoin nato and to become demilitarised, or made neutral. ukraine will not accept these and russia's original plan of a quick strike to topple the government failed. that's led them to resort to more brutal tactics, and to growing suffering. that's also raised questions about whether the west can do more to stop the russian military. there have been calls for nato to impose a no—fly zone to stop russia inflicting damage from the air, but nato has ruled that out, saying it could lead to direct combat and trigger a wider war. the west has been providing military aid and one option being discussed is the us giving planes to poland so that poland can give its mig jets to the ukrainians.

poland says that needs to be a nato decision because of the risk of it becoming a target — something recognised today by the defence secretary. we will support poland in whatever choice she makes as a country. we are there to help one of our oldest allies, you know, we will help them with a whole range of protection measures should they decide to do that but i think, you know, it is a big responsibility for the president and prime minister of poland to make that decision, because russia could retaliate. us secretary of state antony blinken was today visiting nato member estonia, and he made clear that the alliance would defend all its members if they came under attack. an attack on one would be an attack on all. we and our nato allies are prepared to meet any threat coming in our direction, from wherever it comes. the west is trying to keep the pressure on moscow through diplomacy, sanctions and military aid, but so far that has not been enough to reverse the situation on the ground in ukraine.

gordon corera reporting, there. as we heard, the united nations says some two million people have now fled ukraine — demonstrating the sheer scale of this growing humanitarian crisis. refugees are moving into neighbouring countries, with the vast majority heading into poland. it alone has taken 1.2 million people. our correspondent nick thorpe is in hungary's capital city budapest, where people have been arriving after crossing the border with ukraine. what is the scene where you are? well, just to describe where i am here, this is the west station in budapest, one of the largest railway stations and they may hope, the main focal point of all those arriving in hungary now. trains are arriving every hour or so from the eastern

border. they are channelled there from mini from different refugee centres set up along five different points along that border that her output on trains and channelled here to budapest. once they arrive here, you can see behind me, they are given something to eat and drink and those who want to stay here, perhaps half of the 200,000 who have arrived here so far i staying in hungary. the other 100,000 or so i travelling on. to put this into the wider diplomatic perspective, it is also interesting that the prime minister of hungary it will be travelling, he is now in london with the leaders of other central european countries. they are afraid that, far from ukraine being a buffer zone to russia, that the central european countries might themselves now in mr putin's of you becoming more, he wants them to be a buffer zone between russia and western europe in the future. ., ~' , .,

between russia and western europe in the future. ., ~ , ., a between russia and western europe in the future. ., ~ i. a ., , the future. thank you. nick thorpe re ”ortin the future. thank you. nick thorpe reporting there- — shell has announced plans to gradually end its involvement in all russian oil, gas and petroleum. the british firm said it would immediately stop all spot purchases of russian crude oil, and would shut its service stations in the country. live now to our business editor, simonjack, in london. first, tell us more about shell's announcement. the decision to buy a consignment of russian oil, in the spot market, the immediate cash market last week got immediate cash market last week got immediate condemnation, social media outrage and comments from when ukraine tainted that russian oil not smell of ukrainian blood? they apologise for doing that today and said they would not make any more purchases of discounted russian oil as other people have been shunning it. they would also shut their service stations. both of those quite easy to do but longer term, getting out of these long—term supply contracts for oil and gas is a very complex business and the

company tells me it could take weeks, months or even longer to do that. they have thousands of people on the ground working in plants there, they have a lot of employees and it will take some time to do but i think that shell's decision will put the focus on other western companies who have not done this yet and i still trading, the likes of coca—cola, mcdonald's, the focus will now be on their to see what action they take. and talk us through the potential consequences of these threats being made by russia and the us. you have a bit of a stand—off at the moment with the us asking its allies to consider a full embargo on oil and gas. to be clear, the big earner for russia is oil, it makes three times more out of oil than it does out of gas. so you have a retaliatory statement from the russians are saying that if you embargo our oil we will consider switching off the gas and that would

be very difficult for europe to deal with, it relies, mainland europe relies on russia for 40% of its gas. that is why this afternoon we are expecting, around 2:30pm our time, a plan from eu ministers to try to wean itself off the 70% of the gas it uses by the end of the year, a very ambitious target, and there will be collateral damage. any section with its bite, with real bite, has collateral damage on those who impose it and nowhere is that more true than in the oil and gas sector. ,, ., ., ~ , ., more true than in the oil and gas sector. ,, ., . ~' , ., ,, ., more true than in the oil and gas sector. ,, ., . ,, ., sector. simon, thank you. simon jack re ”ortin. well, as we heard, later today volodymyr zelensky will speak live to mps in the house of commons. he will address mps via video link, having spoken to the european parliament in the same way last week. here's our political correspondent damian grammaticas. the ukrainian flag flying over downing street, but is it doing enough in this crisis? borisjohnson this morning greeted the prime minister of poland.

his country has taken 1.2 million refugees and helped transfer arms to ukraine. hungary — it's taken almost 200,000 people, but doesn't want weapons passing through its territory. at today's meeting too were the prime ministers of slovakia, which also borders ukraine, and the czech republic. all are eu nations which were once behind the iron curtain and under moscow's domination. you are countries that are in the front line of this crisis, you are facing the risk of a huge humanitarian crisis. the uk stands prepared to help you in any way that we can, and we will. earlier the chief of the defence staff was there for the cabinet meeting. the uk has led in supplying weapons. reporter: could we be doing more? but by yesterdayjust 300 visas had been issued to ukrainians under the family reunion scheme. reporter: are you ashamed at how few refugees we've taken? _ the defence secretary said he is offering his staff to help.

we can do more, and we will do more. it's embarrassing, though, isn't it? because at this point it looks like the uk government is putting bureaucracy before compassion in the midst of a european crisis. well, hang on, the government's compassion is huge. 200,000 people under the family scheme, uncapped, under the humanitarian scheme, so the number of ukrainians that come to this country is huge. and that is generous. i don't think anyone can say that's not. the tory mp simon hoare today tweeted, "simply not good enough." adding, "the home office needs to move from pettyfogging process to active delivery. get on and help." and labour says sanctions could be tougher. actually, we could take a lot more action around choking off the finances for putin. if, for example, we acted much more quickly against those putin—linked oligarchs who have been stashing their money in london property, that could make a really big difference too. last night the commons approved measures that will make it easier to identify those who have property in the uk and to freeze their assets.

later today when ukraine's president addresses parliament, he is likely to say western nations must do much, much more in this crisis. let's speak now to damian now in westminster. president zelensky�*s appearance in the house of commons is unprecedented, but is it likely to change anything? it is unprecedented, but is it likely to change anything?— unprecedented, but is it likely to change anything? it is likely to add to the pressure _ change anything? it is likely to add to the pressure on _ change anything? it is likely to add to the pressure on western - change anything? it is likely to add l to the pressure on western nations, the uk, to go further. he will be addressing the video link after the commons speaker sir lindsay hoyle agreed to that address from president zelensky. what we had seen so far today in the commons is more anger about refugees, now 1.7 million who have fled into eu countries, and just 300 ukrainians yesterday had been granted visas under the family scheme. an urgent question in the commons today, tory

mp roger gale said what the home secretary said yesterday about processing be in place in calais was not a true and he said usually this would be a resignation issue and he wanted more visa waivers. home office minister kevin foster said they were pushing out more staff and seeking to speed things up, but president zelensky is likely to call for a no—flyjob cell zone and possibly fighterjets, which poland possibly fighter jets, which poland might possibly fighterjets, which poland might do, as we heard that is a tough decision for poland because it might face reprisals from russia. many thanks. french officials in calais say almost 600 ukrainian refugees have now arrived there seeking visas to travel to britain. but they are said to be encountering bureaucratic obstacles. the home office is being accused of not doing enough to help those who've escaped the conflict to seek sanctuary in the uk. our home editor, mark easton, is in calais now. what's the situation today?

as you say, i think the issue is really about the biometric testing, the fact that the uk is absolutely insisting that before someone can get a visa to come to the ukraine is a ukrainian refugee, as part of the ukrainianfamily a ukrainian refugee, as part of the ukrainian family scheme, they need to be checked out properly at a place with the right equipment, which means that loads of people, 600, are here in calais but cannot get a visa because they need a biometric test, they cannot do that in calais, the home office has made the decision not to have those facilities in calais and they are being instructed to go to either paris or brussels. appointments are being made available, they are trying to expand the services. now we understand the home office is about to open a new visa application about to open a new visa application about 60 miles south—east of calais,

in lille, anotherjourney for those who have made it yet but hopefully somewhere suitable for the many more refugees who it is expected will be coming this way to try to make that final journey to the coming this way to try to make that finaljourney to the uk. the authorities here in calais have become increasingly vocal in their criticism of the british response. the mayor of calais made some comments today, she said "we consider this is a lack of humanity, it isjust inhuman. the british had to be clear without guidelines, either they accept refugees or they do not." she contrasted the british authorities with the authorities in france who are providing cheap or free hotel accommodation, free rail travel to paris if people need it and opening their doors for people to stay in their homes. mark easton re ortin:. we'll have more from here in lviv a little later in the programme, but for now it's back to ben

in the studio in london. thank you very much indeed. hundreds of former british soldiers say they want to go to ukraine to fight or to help with medical or humanitarian efforts. but many have told the bbc they are getting mixed messages from the government about whether they should go. here's our home affairs correspondent tom symonds. this is complete calm, peace and tranquillity, and where i'm going is the living version of hell. but, then, for 15 years, hell was what i did. this is shane — ex—soldier. he's been in combat. he works on a farm with other veterans, providing experiences for children with educational needs. orat least he did. israeli first field dressings. he's also trained to deal with the horrific injuries of war. gunshot wounds, shrapnel wounds, possibly loss of limbs. he's on his way to kyiv to set up a field hospital, not to fight —

but he could be targeted, so we're not using his surname. surviving a modern war zone means being highly trained, he says. if you have no military experience and no medical experience, stay out of the fight — the only thing you're going to do is get yourself killed, and potentially someone like me who is going to have to run in and get you out if you've been injured. but at stansted airport, we met up with sam ottaway — heading to ukraine with no military experience. i certainly don't have a death wish. i've got a really comfortable life, good life. that is no excuse, you know, just to sit back and watch this horror unfold. he tried, but he was turned away by ukraine's embassy in berlin. but hundreds of fully trained former soldiers are willing to go. in kent, this small convoy was heading to ukraine at the weekend. we've got a lot of emergency medical kit that we were asked to bring with us.

i was sat at home and i watched the ten—year—old girl on the telly and she'd been murdered by the russians — that's the only way to put it. and i can't sit idly at home watching, so i said, well, let's support some aid convoys and stuff and make sure they're 0k. if i'm fighting, then i'm in the wrong place. we're going to support the relief effort. but they have concerns that one government minister said she supported them going, another said he didn't. and official advice is that they may be prosecuted even forjust assisting others engaged in conflict. they say the government should be supporting them. i hope they get their act together. any ex—military or anyone that's going out there to support the effort, they need to help them. are we ready? because these are their boys that have decided that enough's enough. there's bad people in the world and it shouldn't be happening. more former soldiers will follow these men in the days to come.

but the british government and military chiefs say stay at home — help the people of ukraine from the uk. tom symonds, bbc news. an investigation has concluded that the former commons speaker john bercow was a "serial bully". the independent panel which looked into a number of complaints has banned him from holding a parliamentary pass. mr bercow has labelled the findings a "travesty of justice". live now to our political correspondent david wallace lockhart. david, what more can you tell us? john bercow stepped down as speaker in 2019 after around a decade in the post, and towards the end of his time as speaker allegations began to emerge about his behaviour, eventually three former members of staff came forward, making complaints about behaviour between 2009 and 2014, including allegations of verbal disputes, displays of

angen of verbal disputes, displays of anger, mimicking style. john bercow denies these allegations. it went to the parliamentary commission on standards, she upheld the complaints. mr bercow appealed and we have now had a body called the independent expert panel looking at it, they have reported back today, they have upheld the complaints again, they had said mr boco abused his power, they have labelled him a serial liar and a serial belief and the parliamentary has decided he should not be able to hold a parliamentary pass for the estate, highly at usual fulsome one who has formally held such a position. mr boco said the case against him is rooted in hearsay and has been —— he has been targeted due to his efforts to reform parliament.— to reform parliament. thank you, david. there've been growing calls over the last year for action to ensure the safety of women in public. now the chair of the women and equalities select committee has told the bbc she wants new legislation and clearer signals

from the prime minister that he takes these issues seriously. a yougov survey for the bbc suggests the majority of women feel unsafe walking alone at night. luxmy gopal has been hearing the stories of women from across the uk. a man asked me for my phone number, then punched me when i said no. i have been followed and threatened. i was grabbed and groped... ..made sexual comments... he tried to kiss me as i struggled to get free. women from across the country have been telling us their stories. i was walking to an exercise class in the park, it was nine o'clock in the morning. i'd felt, sort of, someone really close to me, following me. i turned around and this man grabbed my bum and groped me. he then proceeded to put his face and mouth kind of on my neck and jeered at me. i started shouting and screaming and pushing him off. sarah isn't alone. in a poll for the bbc, 43% of women said they'd been groped in public, 32% said they've been subject to unwelcome sexual advances or requests for sexual favours

and 28% had experienced indecent exposure. men surveyed were far less likely to have faced any form of public sexual harassment. four women sat down with us to discuss their experiences. can you remember how you felt at the time? cold, just still, cold. didn't have a clue what to do. i felt absolute terror. i felt, "this is it." i'm full of adrenaline if i'm - walking alone late at night and, like, i'm aware of the fact that, you know, i'm not wearing - my trainers right now. how quickly could i run in these? when we talk about it, we look in each other�*s eyes and go, yeah, we've, like... i recognise that because i have felt that way, i know my friend has felt that way, i know my friend has felt that way, i know my sister has felt that way, i know my sister has felt that way. over half of women surveyed weren't confident police would take a report

of public sexual harassment seriously, and it isn't currently a crime. the chair of the women and equalities committee wants to change that, and wants the issue to be a higher priority at the top of government. i think that the prime minister needs to step up and show that he does take women's safety seriously, and that he's not interested in a few cosmetic measures like cctv, but actually making sure that we have all of the necessary tools to intervene in that offender journey and make sure that today's flasher does not become tomorrow's rapist. the home office says that women's safety remains a top priority, and that it has launched a new national campaign. it says it has delivered several strategy commitments and is looking carefully at where there may be gaps in existing laws on public sexual harassment. government action is only part of the solution, but sarah, like many, hopes the spotlight on the issue could finally result in meaningful change. there are enough voices around now to hopefully say that this is really not ok. this is who we are, this is our bodies. nobody has the right to touch

them unless we say so. luxmy gopal, bbc news. if you have been affected by any of the issues raised, you can find help and advice at bbc.co.uk/actionline. the uk's most premature twins are leaving hospital after a long period in intensive care. harry and harley crane were born four months early last october atjust 22 weeks and five days. they each weighed 500 grams. their parents, jade and steve crane, say they're overjoyed the twins are finally going home. excited. joy. i can imagine when you win the lottery... yes. it's coming to terms with something happening so good to you that you didn't think would. so, just hours before that historic address by president zelensky to the house of commons, let's rejoin reeta in the city of lviv in western ukraine.

shank you, ben. —— thank you, ben. welcome back to lviv. and lysejoins me once more. lyse, nearly two weeks on in this war, what is your insight into how the situation is developing? i think everyone's assessment is that russian forces have not prevailed in the skies or on the ground, as many expected, with a vastly superior firepower and manpower. the ukrainians have put up surprising and effective resistance, both soldiers and civilians. the air power is still largely intact. we see almost every table surface to air missiles streaking across the sky. what the russians have made some progress has been in the south along the black sea where they have more effective fighting forces, but