17 May 2022•Update: 17 May 2022
KYIV, Ukraine
Bearing the brunt of the war, Ukraine’s Pidhaine village has turned into ruin after Russian airstrikes.
Pidhaine, home to almost 200 people, has become one of the places which suffered most from Russia’s war on Ukraine.
The Russian army entered the village from the Chornobyl region near the Belarusian border, and its planes dropped bombs on Pidhaine. By mid-March, 80% of the houses in the village were damaged.
Almost all of the houses in Pidhaine, which looks now like a ghost village, are abandoned, as bombs have destroyed infrastructure and residential places.
Nina, one of the Pidhaine residents who survived the Russian attacks, told Anadolu Agency about her experiences during the war.
She said two missiles hit her courtyard.
“Our houses were bombed on March 14. Nobody had expected this. The windows and doors of my houses were smashed.
“I was injured too. I still have scars on my face. I run away (from bombs) and went to my neighbor’s house to save my life. Soon afterwards, a second missile hit my house. It is no longer usable,” said Nina, who was referred only by her name for security reasons.
Nina said that they took refuge in a cellar for a few days and that Ukrainian soldiers helped them get out of the village on March 20.
She said many residents of the village are old people like herself.
“I don’t understand what the Russian soldiers want from our village. Young people left our village. Only the middle-aged and old people live here.”
Aleksandr, another Pidhaine resident who is referred only by his name for security concerns, said he had taken his family to a neighboring city before the attacks started.
“When I returned to the village, I found my house razed. There were only the ruins of my house. I spent my life building it.”
He said his grandfather fought in the ex-Soviet army against the Nazis in World War II, adding: “Those who once fought against the Nazis are now attacking our lands and killing civilians. I can’t understand it.”
On Tuesday, the Ukrainian military said some 27,900 Russian soldiers have so far been killed in Ukraine during the war.
At least 3,668 people have been killed and 3,896 injured in Ukraine since Russia began its war on Feb. 24, according to UN estimates. The true toll is believed to be much higher.
Over 6.2 million people have fled to other countries, with some 7.7 million people internally displaced, according to the UN refugee agency.
