Civilians are evacuated from a steel plant in Mariupol

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reveals during evacuations that she visited Ukraine’s president in Kyiv. [Forward to a friend]( | [Subscribe]( | [View in your browser]( [Top of The World]( --------------------------------------------------------------- What The World is following Civilians are evacuated from a steel plant in Mariupol [Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy awards the Order of Princess Olga to US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi in Kyiv, Ukraine, April 30, 2022.] Credit: Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP Ukraine The first group of civilians [evacuated from a steel plant]( in Mariupol arrived in Ukrainian-held territory on Monday. They described weeks of bombardment while trapped in the port city. Aid workers were waiting for the arrival of approximately 100 civilians who were expected to arrive in Zaporizhzhia from the Azovstal plant. The Ukrainian military said the civilians were being given hot meals and physical and psychological exams. Some estimates say that [around 100,000 people]( may still be stuck in Mariupol, with little access to food, water and utilities. While the evacuations were underway, US House Speaker [Nancy Pelosi revealed]( that she had visited Ukraine's president to reaffirm American support for Ukraine’s defense against Russia's invasion. Serbia Serbia has publicly displayed a recently delivered [Chinese anti-aircraft missile system](, along with other military hardware purchased from both Russia and Western nations. The move has raised concerns that an arms buildup in the Balkans could threaten an [already fragile peace]( in the region. Members of the public and media were invited to view the display at a military airfield near the capital, Belgrade. Relations are currently tense between Serbia and its neighbors Croatia, Montenegro and Bosnia. Separatist Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik was also present at the military display. Serbia also does not recognise Kosovo’s sovereignty, which declared its independence in 2008. And while Belgrade has voted in favor of UN resolutions condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, it’s refused to join in on international sanctions or openly criticize Moscow. New Zealand New Zealand has reopened its borders to tourists from [more than 60 countries]( — including the US, Canada, the UK and Japan — for the first time in more than two years. Travelers arrived at Auckland Airport, many of them family and friends who were separated during the travel ban. Citizens have been able to travel in and out of the country since March, and Australians have been allowed to do so since April. Now, New Zealand has dropped most of its remaining pandemic border restrictions to other nationalities. Meanwhile in Europe, [Italy and Greece]( have also relaxed some of their COVID-19 restrictions ahead of Europe's peak summer tourist season. --------------------------------------------------------------- From The World [Portugal’s golden visa program sparked an investment boom. But locals say they’re getting priced out.]( [A young woman takes a picture of Lisbon, Portugal, in the Alfama neighborhood from a viewpoint above it at sunset, Aug. 15, 2015.]( Credit: Armando Franca/AP Over the last decade, Portugal has issued [more than 10,000 golden visas]( to foreign investors in exchange for $6 billion in investments. But some say the visa program prices out locals and that Lisbon’s historic neighborhoods are "losing the magic." [Founder of animal rescue in Sudan nurses wild animals back to health]( [Kandaka, the lion, with her cubs at the Sudan Animal Rescue, Khartoum, Sudan, Dec, 4, 2021.]( Credit: Halima Gikandi/The World Osman Salih cares for vulnerable wild animals from across Sudan and nurses them back to health. He realized there was a wider problem of zoos and animal parks in the country being neglected after [years of economic and political turmoil](, so he wanted to do something to help. --------------------------------------------------------------- Double take There's "long COVID" — and then there's "persistent COVID." [One patient in the UK](, who has a severely weakened immune system, had COVID-19 for 505 days. That’s nearly a year and a half. Dr. Luke Blagdon Snell, an infectious disease expert at the Guy’s & St. Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, said: “In long COVID, it’s generally assumed the virus has been cleared from your body, but the symptoms persist. With persistent infection, it represents ongoing, active replication of the virus.” Persistent infections are rare, but experts say that many people with compromised immune systems remain vulnerable. [A colorized electron microscope image shows the Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 emerging from the surface of cells, cultured in the lab, February 2020.] Credit: NIAID-RML via AP/File photo --------------------------------------------------------------- [In case you missed it from The World]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Don't forget to subscribe to The World's Latest Edition podcast using your favorite podcast player: [RadioPublic](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Stitcher](, [Soundcloud](, [RSS]( [The World logo]( [The World on Facebook]( [The World's Twitter account]( [Donate]( | [Forward to a friend]( | [Subscribe]( | [Edit your subscription]( | [Unsubscribe]( | [View in your browser]( Top of the World is written weekday mornings by the team at [The World](. 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