welcome to bbc news. i'm david eades. our top stories: ukrainian fighters in the south—eastern city of mariupol ignore russia's deadline to surrender. the ukrainian prime minister says they'll fight to the end. in the east of the country, ukrainians prepare to counter the latest major russian offensive. translation: we live - in ukraine, this is our land, donbas is the ukraine, and i was born in ukraine, and i will die in ukraine. a fourth day of clashes in parts of sweden, sparked by the plans of a far—right group to burn copies of the koran. and doctors warn of an impending medical catastrophe in sri lanka, amid a desperate shortage of vital medicines.

hello and thanks forjoining us. the ukrainian foreign minister says mariupol no longer exists. the last platoons of ukrainian troops there have retreated to the azovstal, a huge iron and steelworks, ignoring moscow's demand to surrender. ukraine's prime minister, denys shmyhal, says those defending the city will fight to the end. russian bombardment has also continued in other areas of the east — officials say five people have died in kharkiv. wounded civilians are being evacuated by train from the front line to dnipro from where our correspondent tom bateman sent this report, which contains some distressing images. president putin calls his goal the liberation of this country's east.

he's showing the world what that means in mariupol. street battles have intensified for days. the city's defenders are holed up in a giant steelworks, now told by moscow's forces to surrender or die. but ukraine says they'll fight to the end. mariupol�*s fate could seal the next stage of the war as it moves to the east. and those from the hardest—hit areas are running out of time to escape. in dnipro, even some of the wounded are being evacuated west. katya's mum was killed in last week's missile strike on a train station in kramatorsk. "what i saw was like a nightmare," she tells me, "with blood everywhere. "i somehow got to a bench, and police officers helped me. "they put me in a car and took me to hospital." where people once stood

as colleagues or friends, the platform's now a place for the victims of war. tanya grieves for her eldest daughter, marina, killed in a crash in their rush to escape. "i'm scared for my children," says tanya. "we didn't want to leave, and i'm very sorry for the price i had to pay for leaving my own home." and now they travel with the trauma of this invasion, in soviet—era carriages, fleeing russia's advance. many men have stayed behind, except those that have to hold their children alone. and others will need a lifetime of care. well, these patients now face a 20—hourjourney to the west of here, with the kind of injuries they have. and what that tells you is the critical need the ukrainians have to free up hospital space here and to the east, where they're getting ready for a major russian assault.

and in the suburbs, i'm told of an extraordinary story of rescue from mariupol. nastia drove 200 miles south through russian lines in search of her parents, trapped in the siege. it was seeing the hopelessness and despair that made her go, she says. she found a city in ruins, a people reduced to scavenging to survive. the family managed to escape underfire. now, nastia's mum oxana, safely in another city, calls her daughter a hero. and she tells her daughter, "i wanted to kneel before you." nastia says their escape got them back from hell. but tens of thousands remain trapped amid mariupol�*s last stand. tom bateman, bbc news, dnipro in central ukraine.

with russia now focusing on eastern ukrain, the risk to people still living in the area is constant. thousands have fled over the past two months, but many elderly in particular have chosen to stay put. clive myrie has been to the village of serhiivka, near donetsk, to talk to some of them. there's a storm brewing in the east. the ukrainian military are on the move in defence of the homeland. the landscape flat, open country, perfect for heavy armour, as russia readies to seize the donbas region. the road signs proving useless guides, by design. it's mid—morning in the village of serhiivkia. is that for the sleeve? and our presence piques the interest of the local territorial defence force.

an army of volunteers ready for the russians. maxim is 26 and the local commander, born and bred in the village. are you worried about the coming battle in the east in this area? are you worried that the russians are going to come here? "we will be ready to greet the russians," he tells me. "they came to us with weapons, not the other way round. "we live in ukraine. "this is our land. "donbas is the ukraine, and i was born in ukraine "and i will die in ukraine." so many have left the village since the start of the war. a population of moo is now down to just 300, and the vast majority who remain are elderly, clinging on to what they know,

despite the threat. valery is head of the local municipality. he's watched his village leech its young since russia invaded ukraine. but he understands why many older residents want to stay. "they're afraid to leave their houses "and households behind," he tells me. "it's hard to go. "people think that they have lived their share "and want to die at home." raisa is one of the villagers who chose not to leave. raisa? clive. the great absence in her life is her own sister, who lives in donetsk, closer to the russian border. her sister doesn't believe russia has committed war crimes in this conflict, and she believes the invasion is just. "at the moment, i'm

not in touch with her. "due to political reasons, we didn't find common ground. "we lost touch. "so i don't know what she's thinking right now. "since march 27th, we haven't spoken. "i haven't wanted to." march 27th, that's very sad. "that's how it is." the local cherry blossom heralds the onset of spring, but no one's under any illusions that winter is coming to the village of serhiivkia, right across eastern ukraine. well for more analysis on ukraine, i'mjoined now by retired us army colonel chris mayer who's in virginia.

thank you forjoining us. when do you think the russians will be ready to seize donbass and impose their new strategy because obviously it takes a lot of adjusting and logistical effort to get the? fit lot of adjusting and logistical effort to get the?— effort to get the? of course, lo . istics effort to get the? of course, logistics has _ effort to get the? of course, logistics has not _ effort to get the? of course, logistics has not been - effort to get the? of course, i logistics has not been russia? strong point end of this so far but i was surprised by the strategy of going towards kharkviv and keogh. attacking in the last week of every does not make sense. —— kyiv. it makes it nearly impossible until about mid— may. it may not be that the attack is imminent and they may wait for the ground to harden. but on the ground to harden. but on the other hand it did not stop them in february. your previous reporter talked about the open fields, they are great for

ahmed welfare when the ground is hard. the idea of an armoured attack would be to isolate those urban areas and then take them down with infantry, supported by armour but if you cannot do the cross—country manoeuvre required to isolate the cities, you are in a difficult situation. do you think the russian army nonetheless has the capacity to adjust it strategy and logistically to put it into play? because as you say is the direction of those attacks does suggest there was incompetence at best, some would say? again. i am kind of surprised that the strategy was tried to begin with. maybe now they are going to plan b and instead of going through the whole of ukraine, they will focus the power on

they will focus the power on the eastern part of ukraine. again, the ground is a little bit more suitable for ahmed attack, maybe. —— armoured. what they have done in georgia, evenin what they have done in georgia, even in this area, and what they have done more recently, they have done more recently, they do not show a really fast learning curve. we had warnings such as unpredictable consequences from the west supporting ukraine with modern military might. do you think there is a logical thought process behind that as to what those consequences are or is that chat? personally i think it is chad. the way to stand up to a bully is to stand up to the belief and to say, go ahead, try it. but right now, under any sort of international law going back for hundreds of years, we have a moral

imperative to provide the ukrainian people, the vic of the aggressor in an unjust war with all the resources they need to defend themselves against the unjust aggressor. —— victims. against the un'ust aggressor. -- victims.— -- victims. we are into the scenario — -- victims. we are into the scenario where _ -- victims. we are into the scenario where it _ -- victims. we are into the scenario where it russian | -- victims. we are into the - scenario where it russian mate is so much greater in terms of your numbers, in terms of ukraine, orwe your numbers, in terms of ukraine, or we enter your numbers, in terms of ukraine, orwe enteran ukraine, or we enter an indefinite ukraine, orwe enteran indefinite conflict. what ukraine, or we enter an indefinite conflict. what would your best estimate be? mi; indefinite conflict. what would your best estimate be? my best cuess your best estimate be? my best guess would _ your best estimate be? my best guess would be _ your best estimate be? my best guess would be that _ your best estimate be? my best guess would be that it - your best estimate be? my best guess would be that it is - your best estimate be? my best guess would be that it is going l guess would be that it is going to wonder being frozen conflict just as it has almost anywhere else where russia has tried to use military power. but the long—term issue will be whether or not we, the west and ukraine, will agree that their aggressive and just move justifies taking the territory they have already taken. thank ou ve they have already taken. thank you very much _ they have already taken. thank you very much indeed. - they have already taken. thank you very much indeed. thank. you very much indeed. thank ou. in sweden, the burning of the quran by a far—right,

anti—immigrant group has sparked four days of violent clashes in a number of cities. cars, police vehicles and rubbish bins were set on fire and at least 17 people have been arrested. mark lobel reports. fury at the authorities. the police targeted by protesters into this residential area in norrkoping. a spillover of the days of clashes across swedish cities. three people needed medical attention here after being hit by police bullets. several vehicles were set on fire. at least 70 people were arrested. — i7. fire. at least 70 people were arrested. — 17. flash floods abstain from a series of organised rally since thursday, led by the leader of a danish far right political party, currently on two are in sweden. inflammatory events that include the actual burning or threat of burning of the koran.

leading the rally is rasmus paludan, representing the hard line which received 1.8% of the vote, failing to win a seat. in 2020 he was jailed for a month for offences including racism stop he plans to stand in swedish elections in september. we and iraq have both summoned their swedish and advise to protest against the authorities, allowing demonstrations during which the central religious ecstasies lab is set on fire. —— kor. at least one dozen police officers have been injured in the clashes so far. they save they have not seen such violent rides on the streets before.

you're watching bbc news. the headlines this hour: ukrainian fighters in the city of mariupol ignore russia's deadline to lay down their arms. the ukrainian prime minister says they'll fight to the end. in the east of the country, ukrainians have been preparing to counter the latest major russian offensive. doctors in sri lanka say they are running out of vital drugs and equipment and need urgent help. the country is going through its worst economic crisis in living memory and a shortage of foreign exchange means it is unable to import medicines that are desperately needed. sri lanka is due to start talks with the international monetary fund this week but if help doesn't arrive soon, medical unions fear it could lead to a catastrophic number of deaths. 0ur south asia correspondent rajini vaidyanathan reports from colombo. already in a critical condition, sri lanka's now heading towards a medical emergency. doctors are running out of life—saving drugs.

the future of this island nation becoming ever more fragile. at the largest children's hospital in the country, we meet a doctor who manages resources. these are difficult times. these surgeries, we need very specific things. sri lanka imports most of its medical supplies — a lack of foreign currency to buy them to blame for the shortages. stretched to the limit, operations continue at this hospital. others have already stopped some procedures. we don't know what would happen if the dollars don't bring these things to the country. we might end up in a very difficult situation. this is a very stressful period. health official officials at this hospital agreed to speak to us but i have spoken to many doctors across sri lanka, who say that the government says they are not allowed to speak out in an individual capacity, but they tell me that they are worried that their hospitals are running low or running out

of essential medicines and that if something isn't done soon, sri lanka will face a medical catastrophe. with few doctors willing to speak publicly about the shortages, some have taken part in silent protests. while hundreds of medical students stormed the health ministry, joining anti—government protests against food and fuel shortages. this is a crisis of scarcity, with no clear end in sight. medical unions are appealing to the world to help. we need supply to come in whatever the form, that is from any other country, government procurement, or in region donation. so if this situation continues, there will be a day in the nearfuture, maybe couple of weeks or one month, i am afraid to say there may be a situation where we won't be able to save the patient

life or limb. sri lanka's health ministry told the bbc it's working to overcome the shortages and is getting help from nearby india and other donors. but this is a public health system in distress. no—one knows how or when sri lanka will recover. rajini vaidyanathan, bbc news, colombo. at least a43 people have died in devastating floods in the province of kwazulu—natal in eastern south africa. teams of rescue workers are continuing to search for dozens of people who are still missing, but their efforts have been hampered by yet more rain. pumza fihlani reports from durban. this was no ordinary easter for the people of kwazulu—natal. church services have been disrupted across the province after severe floods damaged scores of places of worship.

south of durban, community members have gathered to pray with this grieving family who have lost two people. a week ago, five homes stood here, but injust minutes, everything was gone. this three—year—old and her mother were asleep when flash floods ripped through this homestead. the toddler's body was found days later in a nearby river, but the mother is still missing. translation: the lord - was showing off when he blessed me with this child. in the mornings, she would kiss me and ask me, "am i your grandchild?" and i would say, "yes. "you're my baby. " i loved these children. thousands of people have been displaced by the floods. in this small village alone, 15 homes have been destroyed. a handful of families have found temporary shelter here. we are in a small church now that has been turned into a temporary shelter for about 25 people.

these are people whose homes were washed away in the last few days by floods, who lost all their worldly belongings. they are currently being housed here. everything that we see, from the food and the mattresses, and the blankets that we see inside here were donated by neighbours who were lucky to survive what has happened. the local pastor says the need for extra support for this traumatised community is evident. we do have counselling. we still need a lot of counselling, but people are together, are hands—on together to help those who are in desperate need. but the people here tell me that the church is not home. there has been no help for them yet from the state and so, they do not know where or how they will rebuild their lives. pumza fihlani, bbc news. let's get some of

the day's other news. an arab—israeli party has suspended its involvement in israel's governing coalition in protest at days of violence at the al—aqsa mosque compound injerusalem. the raam party said its four members of parliament would resign if the government continued to act against the people of jerusalem. the french far—right presidential candidate marine le pen and several members of her party have been accused by the eu's anti—fraud body of embezzling 620,000 euros. they're not accused of profiting directly, but of claiming the funds as expenses for staff and events while ms le pen was a member of the european parliament. it comes a week before she is due to take part in the second run—off against emmanuel macron. the 300m—long cargo vessel ever forward, that got stuck off the us east coast near baltimore a month ago, has finally been refloated after hundreds of containers onboard were removed. its sister ship the ever given blocked the suez canal in egypt

for six days last year, disrupting world trade. a massive queue of trucks formed on the poland—belarus border as russian and belarussian drivers rushed to leave the eu following a sanctions deadline on saturday. some drivers were stuck for up to 33 hours after the eu banned lorries from the two countries from entering or staying in the bloc — except those carrying medicine, mail or petroleum products. to the uk now, where the most senior clerical figure in the anglican church, the archbishop of canterbury, has strongly criticised the government's plan to send some asylum seekers to rwanda. in his easter sermon, justin welby said it posed serious ethical questions, and was "the opposite of the nature of god". but a cabinet minister said the archbishop had misunderstood the government's aim, which was to combat people—traffickers. 0ur religion editor aleem maqbool reports.

happy easter to all of you. lovely to see you. in his most important sermon of the year, the archbishop of canterbury dealt directly with the issues of the day, drawing attention to the pressures felt by many here struggling with the cost of living and calling on russia to commit to a ceasefire and withdrawal from ukraine. but he also talked of serious ethical questions about the government plan to send asylum seekers overseas. it cannot carry the weight of our national responsibility as a country formed by christian values. because subcontracting out our responsibilities, even to a country that seeks to do well, like rwanda, is the opposite of the nature of god. in a response to justin welby�*s remarks, a home office spokesperson said:

in his sermon, the archbishop of york said that in law, there was no such thing as an illegal asylum seeker. but he's been talking about compassionate immigration policy for years, so i asked him was anyone listening to what the church had to say? i suppose i'm going to say with a smile that... it's hard to be held responsible for the fact that people don't listen. i think we've all woken up and thought, "this is not how "the world is meant to be. "it is not how i want it to be. "i want it to be a different world." in the queen's absence from windsor, the duke and duchess of cambridge led the royals at their service. in his easter message, the prince of wales said he had been profoundly moved by those ready to open their homes to people fleeing conflict. the mostjoyous scenes

of the day were in a st peter's square packed for the first public easter mass there since the pandemic began. but the pope's message focussed on events in ukraine, calling this "an easter of war". translation: may there be peace in war-torn ukraine, _ so sorely tried by the violence and destruction of the cruel and senseless war into which it was dragged. may a new dawn of new hopes appear. the tidings of hope this easter have undoubtedly been tinged with a sense that more empathy and understanding would be welcomed, both at home and abroad. aleem maqbool, bbc news. a reminder of our top story — the ukrainian foreign minister says the last platoons of ukrainian troops in mariupol have retreated to a huge iron and steelworks, ignoring moscow's demand to surrender. ukraine's prime minister denys shmyhal says those defending

the city will fight to the end. that is bbc news. goodbye for now. hello, there. for much of the country easter sunday was a fine, dry and sunny day, quite warm again across the south—east, but we have seen some changes out west with the weather front pushing in, bringing outbreaks of rain and cloud and also increasing breeze. and that's how it is going to be for easter monday — a cooler, fresher feel to things with a few showers dotted around. here's the frontal system continuing to work its way towards the east of the country during this evening and overnight. barely anything on it by the time it reaches the eastern side of the country but it will leave a legacy of cloud, a few showers dotted around — particularly across the northern half of the country, where they will be quite blustery as the winds will be a feature. further south, we should see some lengthy clear spells. so, low pressure anchored to the north—west of the country for easter monday.

more isobars on the chart than what we've been used to of late. it will be breezy, and we are also dragging in some cooler air off the atlantic around the area of low pressure, as you can see from the blue hue there. so, a fresher start to easter monday but there will be quite a bit of sunshine around. into the afternoon, we could start to see the cloud beginning to build up pretty much anywhere with the odd shower developing. most of the showers, though, i think across the north—west of the country, where they'll be quite blustery as the winds will be a feature here, particularly for the northern and western isles and into northern ireland. the winds a little bit lighter further south and east that you go. so, temperatures will be noticeable — we've been used to the low 20s across the south—east of the country, 16 or 17 degrees for easter monday afternoon and the low teens further north and west. now, through monday night, further showers continue across england and wales. there will be some clear spells, too. we've got this weather front pushing into the north—west of the country to bring outbreaks of rain. it is going to be a chilly night, i think. northern and western areas under clearer skies, could even see a touch of frost, so gardeners, farmers, just take note. so, then, into tuesday,

we are in between weather systems. this area of low pressure pulling away to the north. it means the winds will be turning lighter again so, it is a chilly start to the day for tuesday. we'll have that weather front across western scotland, northern ireland, bringing thicker cloud, outbreaks of rain. england and wales, some sunshine through the morning but then, into the afternoon, a few showers could develop. some of these could be heavy and they will be slow—moving because the winds will be light. and a cooler day to come as well — 12 to 15 degrees. it looks like high pressure wants to take charge again from wednesday onwards, so there will be a lot of dry weather around towards the end of the week. winds coming in from the east, so it will tend to be a little bit warmer towards the west of the country.

this is bbc news, the headlines: ukraine's prime minister has said the country's troops in the besieged port city of mariupol will fight to the end against russian forces. denys shmyhal said the city had not yet fallen, despite weeks of attacks by russia, and moscow saying any remaining soldiers would be spared, if they surrendered. for the fourth day in a row, swedish police have clashed with protesters angry at a far—right group's plans to burn copies of the koran. three people were injured in the eastern city of norrkoping when officers fired warning shots at rioters. at least seventeen people have been arrested. doctors in sri lanka have said the island's hospitals are nearly out of

life—saving medicines as an economic crisis continues.