Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - March 14, 2022, Winnipeg, Manitoba <§> PAGE A1 TheFree Press FOR MANITOBA. FOR 150 YEARS. FOREVER WITH YOUR SUPPORT. MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2022 SERVING WINNIPEG AND THE WEST SINCE 1872 JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS People gather at a rally in support of Ukraine and against the Russian invasion at the Manitoba legislature Sunday. See story on page A4. Airstrikes hit perilously close to Poland's border, damage military training base Russia strikes western Ukraine YURASKARMANAU I VIV, Ukraine — Russian missiles pounded a military base in western Ukraine on Sunday, killing 35 people in an attack on a facility that served as a crucial hub for cooperation between Ukraine and the NATO countries supporting its defense. The barrage marked an escalation of Moscow’s offensive and moved the fighting perilously close to the Polish border. The attack so near a NATO member-country raised the possibility that the alliance could be drawn into the fight, and was heavy with symbolism in a conflict that has revived old Cold War rivalries and threatened to rewrite the current global security order. More than 30 Russian cruise missiles targeted the sprawling facility at Yavoriv, which has long been used to train Ukrainian soldiers, often with instructors from the United States and other countries in the Western alliance. Poland is also a transit route for Western military aid to Ukraine, and the strikes followed Moscow’s WAR IN UKRAINE threats to target those shipments. Ina Padi, a 40-year-old Ukrainian who crossed the border with her family, was taking shelter at a fire station in Wielkie Oczy, Poland, when she was awakened by blasts Sunday morning that made the glass in the windows shake. “I understood in that moment even if we are free of it, (the war) is still coming after us,” she said. Since their invasion more than two weeks ago, Russian forces have struggled in their advance across Ukraine, in the face of stiffer than expected resistance, bolstered by Western weapons support. Instead, Russian forces have besieged several cities and pummeled them with strikes, hitting two dozen medical facilities and leading to a series of humanitarian crises. The UN has recorded at least 596 civilian deaths, though it believes the true toll is much higher, and Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s office said that at least 85 children are among them. An American filmmaker and journalist was also killed Sunday. Millions more people have fled their homes amid the largest land conflict in Europe since the Second World War broad cease-fire have so far failed, but the Kremlin’s spokesman said another round would take place today by videolink, according to Russian state news agency Tass. Meanwhile, U.S. President Joe Biden is sending his national security adviser to Rome to meet with a Chinese official. There are worries in Washington that Beijing is amplifying Russian disinformation and may help Moscow evade punishing Western economic sanctions. The attacked training base near Yavoriv is less than 25 kilometres from the Polish border and appears to be the westernmost target struck during Russia’s 18-day invasion. The base has hosted NATO drills, and a senior official, Admiral Rob Bauer, previously hailed it as embodying “the spirit of military cooperation” between Ukraine and international forces. As such, the site is a potent symbol of Russia’s longstanding concerns that the expansion in recent years of the 30-member Western military alliance to include former Soviet states threatens its security — something NATO denies. Still, the perceived threat from NATO is central to Moscow’s justifications for the war, and it has demanded Ukraine drop its ambitions to join the alliance. Lviv governor Maksym Kozytskyi said most Russian missiles fired Sunday “were shot down because the air defense system worked.” Those that got through killed at least 35 people and wounded 134, he said. The United States condemned the attack on Yavoriv, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken tweeting: “The brutality must stop.” • RUSSIA, CONTINUED ON A2 City author's book in hands of Ukrainian children BRENDA SUDERMAN A Winnipeg writer hopes his book about an abandoned Kenyan boy who grew up to help thousands of vulnerable children might offer some comfort to Ukrainian children now fleeing their homes. Dozens of copies of The Biggest Family in the World, written by Paul H. Boge and illustrated by Winnipeg artist Faye Hall, were handed out last week by a local Christian charity to families at the train station in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih. “The thing that really captivates me is the photo of the girl,” Paul H. Boge said about the youngster clad in a puffy pink jacket, black boots and Minnie Mouse toque and clutching a copy of the book. Another photo shows the little girl holding her mother’s hand as they are about to board the train with the mother now carrying the picture book. Boge’s book tells the story of Charles Mulli, abandoned by his family at age six, who clawed his way out of poverty to become a wealthy entrepreneur and then sold his businesses to help tens of thousands of orphaned or disadvantaged children in Kenya. The title of the book is based on Mulli’s view that all those he helped were like his own children, thus becoming part of “the biggest family in the world.” Originally released in Canada in 2015 by Castle Quay Books, the text of the book was recently translated into Ukrainian, with the digital files sent to a Ukrainian distributor and a thousand copies printed just weeks before the Russian invasion on Feb. 24, said publisher Larry Willard. • BOOK, CONTINUED ON A2 HANDOUT PHOTO BY SASHA ROMANCH Copies of The Biggest Family in the World were handed out last week to evacuating children at a train station in Kryvyi Rih. Restrictions end Tuesday, reaction is mixed Anxiety, optimism at end of COVID measures ERIK PINDERA TWO years after COVID-19 was first identified in the province, most of Manitoba’s pandemic restrictions are about to expire, raising both anxiety and cautious optimism about the future. Beginning Tuesday, Manitobans will no longer be required to wear masks in most indoor public spaces, while those who test positive for COVID-19 won’t be forced to quarantine. The mask mandate will remain in some cases, including at health-care facilities. The move comes after the province removed proof-of-vaccination requirements for public places on March 1, as well as vaccine and testing mandates for public sector employees, including education, child-care and health-care workers. Dr. Philippe Lagacé-Wiens said he has mixed feelings about the removal of the mandates, but he’s hopeful. “Honestly I’m feeling more optimistic now than I think I have in two years,” the University of Manitoba professor of medical microbiology and infectious diseases expert told the Free Press. “I am feeling like there’s reason to be removing some of these restrictions but I also am opposed to removing them cold turkey.” That means looking at hospital admissions, rather than a date on the calendar, he said. As of Friday, there were still 417 COVID-19 patients in hospital in Manitoba, 23 of them in intensive care. While still high, the numbers have gone down gradually over the last several weeks. Lagacé-Wiens said the removal of the mask mandate should have been done gradually to protect Manitobans and lessen the burden on the healthcare system. “You might say (masks) should still be used in public transit, they should still be used when you’re visiting elderly or vulnerable people, they should still be used in crowded situations — Jets games, large gatherings — and maybe you don’t need to be going all out when you’re going to the grocery store anymore,” he said. “So I think there was a middle ground that we could’ve implemented and watched for another couple of weeks and then if the trends were still favourable, then relieve a little bit more.” Business leaders are cautious, too. Loren Remillard, president and CEO of the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce, said there’s a degree of uncertainty and anxiety among business owners. “That is driven of course by, how will the public respond regardless of what decision (businesses) make, whether they maintain a mandate or whether they lift it completely,” Remillard said. “There’s definitely pros and cons that all businesses are weighing. “Ultimately, what we’re hearing when we’re speaking with our members is they are taking a wait-and-see approach.” That means the majority of public-facing businesses in Winnipeg, such as restaurants, theatres and gyms, will maintain a mask mandate for staff for at least a few weeks, Remillard said. • COVID, CONTINUED ON A2WEATHER ^ VARIABLE CLOUD. HIGH -7 — LOW -8 INSIDEBEATING THE BLUESThe Winnipeg Jets kept their playoff hopes alive, defeating division rival St. Louis 4-3 in overtime / C1COURAGEOUS AGAINCliff Derksen, who emerged as a pillar of strength after his daughter Candace was slain in 1984, faces his final challenge / B1BRADY IS BACKTampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady, just 41 days into his retirement, has decided against hanging up his cleats / C2 A_01_Mar-14-22_FP_01.indd 1 2022-03-13 10:27 PM ;