The superstar volunteer from Mariupol says he fought his way into the besieged city several times while the Russian army continually bombed it.

At the beginning of the war, Mykola Serdiuk was with his family in the occupied vil-lage of Havrylivka near Hostomel (Kyiv Region). To leave, they had to sneak through Russian checkpoints at their own risk. They saw columns of Russian tanks, smashed cars in ditches, but with God's help and prayer they made it to safety.

Svitlana Zamitailo lives in the village of Zahaltsi, Kyiv Region. The woman's family lost everything they had: their house and possessions. But the worst thing is that the war took the life of her brother, who was transporting people and humanitarian aid.

Red Cross volunteer Mykhailo Tulskyi was under occupation in Borodianka and saw with his own eyes the terrible crimes committed by the Russian military against civilians and military personnel. The man is now being treated for PTSD.

Hanna Shmorhun is a resident of the notorious house at 353 Central Street in Borodianka. She hid in a private home with her neighbors, but it was not safe there either. The Russians bombarded houses with tanks, shot people in the streets, and buried the dead in a ditch.

Petro Neshchadym is a pensioner from Moshchun (a village in Kyiv Region). His house was destroyed. Petro hopes that the war will end and he will be healthy enough to build a new house.

And what do chebureks [deep-fried turnovers with a filling of ground or minced meat and onions] have to do with it? Lieutenant Colonel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleh Sydorenko recalls the story from the service.

A resident of Borodianka, Tetiana Bukina, and her relatives were hiding in the basement from Russian bombings. On 1 March, the Russians dropped several air bombs on their house. Unfortunately, the panel ceilings could not hold up and buried the family.

During the bombing of Borodianka, Mykhailo Kokidko and his son received shell shock. The family barely had time to escape the destroyed burning house. After the evacuation, the man ended up under occupation in the neighboring village of Zahaltsi.

Svitlana Leonova has been fleeing the war since 2015. At that time, she moved from the temporarily occupied Shakhtarsk to Kramatorsk, but on 24 February 2022, the war came to her home. Now, she lives in a modular town in Borodianka and dreams of returning home most of all.

On 1 and 2 March 2022, Russian aviation destroyed eight multi-storey residential buildings in Borodianka with powerful FAB-250 aerial bombs. Nadiia Khomich’s house was also destroyed. Now, the woman and her family live in a modular town. She weaves nets for the military, makes trench candles, and does not lose hope.

Vitalii Smazhev spent 100 days with his mother in occupied Izium (a town in Kharkiv Region). He had to dig graves for old people who were dying of cold and get food from destroyed supermarkets.

After ten days of being under shelling, Olha Hdulia left Irpin with one backpack and two cats. Like thousands of city residents, she evacuated across the destroyed Romanivsky Bridge, which is now called the Bridge of Life.

Yurii Liapkalo and his three-year-old son Hlib tried to survive almost two months under constant shelling without normal food, water, heat, or communication. They managed to evacuate in April 2022. They live in the Czech Republic now, but sometimes Hlib still looks for shelter when he hears a rumble in the sky.

Shelling of prisons, lengthy consideration of the case, occupation, and even mobilization into the Russian army — tens of thousands of Ukrainian prisoners faced these and other problems because of the war. The Advocacy Director, Hugues de Suremain, talks about the work of the European Prison Litigation Network (EPLN).

Ostapovska Nataliia and Iryna are residents of the Krasna Hirka village. Without holding back tears, mother and daughter tell their story. Before their eyes, the rocket destroyed the house, animals, and the most dear person — father and husband. “In memory of the victims, we must not give up and move towards victory,” the women say, despite the grief they have not yet overcome.

Vitalii Chernov was taken by the Russian troops to the police station in Kupiansk (Kharkiv Region) on 2 September (2022). He refused to cooperate with the Russians. On 8 September, during the counter-attack of the Ukrainian troops, 150 prisoners broke out of their cells and set fire to the hated prison. We publish the story of the school principal’s capture and subsequent rescue.

Olena Movchan is a resident of Shybene village in the Kyiv Region. The settlement was occupied from the first days of the full-scale invasion. The woman experienced many hardships. Olena says that she was forced to communicate with Russians. Mostly, these were Buryats and Kadyrovites [Chechens].

From the first day of the war, Kharkiv and its suburbs were brutally bombed. The Russians destroyed entire districts. Despite this, some of our interviewee’s Russian relatives refuse to face the truth.

Tamara Vyshniak met a full-scale war in her home village of Borodianka in the Kyiv Region. The woman was shell-shocked during one of the air raids, which destroyed a neighboring house. The wrecked slabs covered people, but it was impossible to save them. Her evacuation was also not easy. Tamara says that Russian helicopters fired at civilians.