Day of Mourning and Remembrance of the Victims of War: what is the price of russia's war against Ukraine?
Lost lives, stolen childhood, destroyed cities and occupied homes. What price do Ukrainians pay in the war with the invader-russia?
The Day of Mourning and Remembrance of the Victims of War is a day of remembrance in Ukraine. It is celebrated annually on June 22, when the German-Soviet war began and took the lives of every fifth Ukrainian. Introducing this Day in November 2000, Ukrainians did not even imagine that in almost 22 years, it would turn from history into everyday reality.
What is the problem?
War. Cities and villages were destroyed, Ukrainian land was plundered, thousands of innocent people were killed, and millions of people's lives were destroyed. War is always terrible, especially when it is in your home, city, or country. russia's military aggression against Ukraine has been reaping its terrible harvest for 4 months now.
For 119 days, Ukrainians have been fighting for the right to life. They go through the hell of the frontline, through the cold and dampness of shelters, through foreign lands that are far from sweet, through separation from the dearest, and the death of relatives and friends. Ukraine pays an incredibly high price for its freedom.
russia killed them
russia kills civilians. According to UN figures, as of June 17, at least 4,500 civilians have died in Ukraine since the war started. According to the organization, another 5,565 people were injured. The most common cause of death or injury, according to the UN, is the use of explosive devices with a large area of damage, including heavy artillery shelling and multiple launch rocket systems, as well as missiles and air strikes.
The UN clarifies that there are a lot more dead and injured, and the figures show only the number of documented and confirmed victims of the war.
The National Police named the preliminary number of civilians killed since the beginning of the full-scale russian invasion. According to National Police Chief Ihor Klymenko, more than 12,000 cases of civilian deaths are currently being investigated, and 1,200 bodies have not yet been identified. And these are also only approximate figures.
russia is killing and maiming our children. Since 2014, due to the russian armed aggression in Donbas, Ukraine has learned what it is like to lose children in war. But, since February 24, the russists have destroyed the childhood of a whole generation of Ukrainians. And there is no forgiveness for that. The death of relatives, destroyed houses, the cold of basements, refugees, fear of shelling, sexual violence, loneliness, and orphanhood have become a new terrible reality for the children of Ukraine.
Our children know what air raids and bombing are. They live in occupation or are forced to become migrants. 313 children died due to the attack of the russian occupiers on Ukraine. Thousands of Ukrainian children fell victim to this war. Hundreds died, were injured and maimed, and even more, were psychologically traumatized. All these Ukrainian children are victims of russia's aggression against Ukraine. It is a terrible reality in which we have lived for eight years and over a hundred days.
On her first birthday, this little girl came to her father, Vladyslav Soldat, a 93rd Kholodny Yar Brigade soldier. But the father will never hold her again. He went to defend his land and gave his life so that his daughter and all the children of Ukraine could live.
russia is destroying the best of our nation. Patriots, volunteers, people with an active life position, and journalists are dying. Thus, since the beginning of the full-scale war of the russian federation against Ukraine, 32 journalists have died — 8 while performing editorial tasks, 11 became accidental victims of shelling, and 13 gave their lives for Ukraine in the ranks of the Armed Forces.
Every day at 9:00, Ukraine freezes in a nationwide minute of silence to honor the memory of those killed in the armed aggression of the russian federation.
Destroyed cities and villages
From the first days of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by russian troops, civilians, ambulances, orphanages, hospitals, and residential areas came under fire and air strikes in different regions.
According to the Cabinet of Ministers, the minimum housing damage equals 45 million m2. Some towns and villages were almost completely destroyed. There were Ukrainian families in each of the destroyed houses. And even if they were lucky enough to escape from this hell alive, all these people are victims of war.
This is what the quarters of Mariupol look like after the arrival of the "russian world"
Mariupol. The whole world now knows the name of this city. The city of Maria became the first large Ukrainian city to be completely methodically destroyed by the russian army and despite casualties among the civilian population. Mariupol is a story of the shocking shelling of a maternity hospital, from which bloodied mothers were carried on stretchers. A story of hundreds of people buried alive under the local drama theater with the inscription "Children," which was bombed by russia. A story of hastily made burials in the yards of high-rise buildings and kilometers of mass graves, into which the occupiers still dump unidentified bodies of citizens like garbage. A story of dances and celebrations of the occupiers on the bones of Mariupol residents and the torturing of the people who remained in the city. It is a sanitary catastrophe and epidemic. It is impossible to forgive and forget all this.
Before the war, Irpin was one of the most successful towns in Ukraine. The city topped the ranking of migratory attractiveness and became one of the three safest cities in the country.
It was a city of health and sports, a city of cozy parks and beautiful squares, a city of happy people. But russian aggression changed everything. Today, Irpin leads another ranking — of the most destroyed Kyiv region cities. The occupiers destroyed almost 70% of the city's housing and social infrastructure.
Debris in Irpin
A young woman named Iryna fled the shelling from Irpin with her children. "The place that was my universe is gone forever. It's hard to go back to a place where for 6 days you have felt animal fear for your life and the life of your child. Then, in an instant, you have to leave everything and just run away… And in two weeks, you find out that your house burned down along with everything dear and valuable to you… I really do not know how and where to return. I understand that I am not alone. In Ukraine, thousands of such stories are much scarier. Everyone is living through their own tragedy and looking for an opportunity to survive somehow… "
There was nothing left of Iryna's house except the metal frame of the stairs. Now she has found refuge abroad and thanks the universe for the opportunity not to lose faith in humanity. Iryna is safe, smiling in her photos, and she looks happy. But even she admits that thoughts of death still do not leave her. "After the liberation of Irpin, there are many photos of human grief and losses during the occupation. Murders, rapes, atrocities. My loss is terrible, but it is not a tragedy. Loss of loved ones, loss of health, and psychological trauma are things that cannot be restored. Two of my neighbors did not survive the horde's invasion, and their bodies have been lying in the open for two weeks. "
We will liberate Mariupol. Just as Irpin, Bucha, and Borodyanka were liberated. But this will not bring back those who fell victim to the russists.
Millions of Ukrainians had to flee their homes to escape death. While some of these people already have the opportunity to return to their native lands, others have nowhere to return. Places they loved, gave birth to children, and made plans for the future, are leveled to the ground or are under occupation.
Under fire and in occupation
A destroyed hospital in the Mykolayiv region
"When they start bombing, the children start shouting – baba, let's run to the bomb shelter!" the villagers on the border of the Mykolaiv region and Kherson region live under constant shelling from the occupiers from the Kherson side. Destroyed houses, sinkholes in the ground the size of a truck, lack of water and food — this is a terrible reality not everyone can leave.
In Kherson, where "they are not shooting," it's not sweet either. Here, the enemy kills silently, intimidates, and oppresses psychologically. The region has been under occupation for more than a hundred days, and the enemy has captured 94% of the Kherson region. In the first days, citizens participated in peaceful resistance actions and opposed the armed military. Over time, the pressure on them intensified, the occupiers began to use weapons against peaceful protesters, and rallies became impossible. Kidnapping and torture of activists started. However, it was difficult to get to the safe territory because there was no official corridor to get to the territory controlled by the Ukrainian military. Now it is almost impossible to leave because the enemy blocked all exits from the city and region.
For almost a month, the Kherson region has been without communication: the russians have unlocked Ukrainian mobile operators and introduced total control over communication on social networks and telephone. The Internet connection is available only in certain parts of the city and for those who connected via small local providers before the war. To live in Kherson is to feel daily sticky horror of not being able to call your relatives and find out if they are alive.
Kherson residents gather in places where there is a Ukrainian connection
Occupiers feel at home in Kherson. They can "dislike" anyone for any reason. The person is taken "to the basement," and it is unknown whether they will return home from there.
"russian world" deprived Kherson residents of pharmacies and medicines. Medicines are sold on roadsides and bazaars from the car trunks under the scorching sun or through telegram groups from the same cars. In Telegram groups, to emphasize that the drugs are of high quality, they add words "Ukrainian" or "not Crimean." If the disease is severe, all patient's relatives and friends will look for medicine in all parts of the city simultaneously. And they might not find it anyway. Even an ordinary bottle of hydrogen peroxide can cost up to one hundred hryvnias. And if a person has no money, they just have to die slowly.
Lost physical and psychological health, broken destinies, torn families, destroyed houses and infrastructure. Thousands of deaths and millions of people were injured by war. russia brought all this to us. The world must hear and understand: Ukraine pays a bloody tribute to the war monstrosity every day, and if we are not supported in this struggle, other countries may become the next victims of russian aggression.
What is the solution?
For 119 days, our soldiers are fighting absolute evil. Everyone is involved in the battle with a terrorist country, an invader state. Ukrainians know this fight has not been here for four months, or even eight years. It has been going on for centuries. For hundreds of years, we have been winning the right to be Ukrainians in the struggle against moscow's imperial ambitions.
Every Ukrainian's task is to survive and win. We thank the world for its help, for media support, for funds, for an entire army of volunteers, and for modern weapons. The best solution for the world is to continue helping Ukraine with weapons and money, to hear the voices of truth from those who faced the horrors of war, and to remember the victims of the russist regime and the russian army. And the main thing is not to forget about the war and not to be "tired" of it. Because if we cannot deal with the russist influx, it will not stop and will come to places where it is peaceful and quiet now. Help us stop the war and genocide of Ukrainians! Ukraine must stand firm because it is now protecting the whole of Europe, the entire democratic world.
The solution for Ukrainians is to keep fighting and reminding the world about the war. Tell your stories. Make posts and stories in English, even if it seems that foreigners are not reading them. Tell the world about what is happening in Ukraine.
More useful solutions!
The Ministry of Culture and Information Policy created the #MyWar platform. Thanks to it, every Ukrainian can describe facts and personal experiences of the war started by the russian federation against Ukraine. In addition to text, you can also add a video or photo to your personal story confirming war crimes committed by russian military of the aggressor state.
Any citizen of any country in the world will be able to see and read the true testimonies of people who saw russia's cynicism and barbarism. It is our testimony.
Let's work together to make every citizen of the civilized world say: This is #MyWar! Help us defeat and punish the aggressor. And all the sacrifices of Ukrainians in russia's war with Ukraine will not be in vain.
