Themes by tag: occupation

Andrii Leinveber has been passionate about horses since childhood, and bought his first horse at the age of 14. In 2022, he founded his own equestrian club in Melitopol, a city in southern Ukraine. The club offered riding lessons for adults and children, and Andrii also taught jigiting – the art of trick riding.

After russia’s full-scale invasion began, Andrii’s stable was in danger. russian shelling damaged one of the buildings, and Andrii and his friends had to round up frightened horses scattered throughout the city. He took five horses to his home, while the others were cared for by friends.

When Melitopol was occupied by russian troops, the horses faced a new threat: hunger. The city lacked fodder, as the occupiers forbade travel to other settlements for supplies and deliberately destroyed the hay meant for the horses. One day, Andrii himself was captured by the russians. He was held in a cell for two weeks without contact with the outside world. After his release, Andrii decided to evacuate. He managed to take three horses with him, although it took three attempts to leave – twice he was turned back at russian checkpoints.

Now, Andrii has established a new equestrian club in the Odesa oblast, where he takes care of five horses and a pony. He also invites soldiers to participate in equine therapy.

• animals
• occupation
• prisoners
• russian crimes
• Odesa

On December 21, the War Museum in Kyiv will host the presentation of Chernihiv During the War – 2022: Voices of Living Witnesses, a bilingual collection of firsthand accounts detailing the russian occupation and siege of Chernihiv and its surrounding region between February and April 2022.

The project was initiated by Kateryna Lytvyn, a historian and candidate of historical sciences. At the outset of russia’s all-out invasion, Lytvyn fled Chernihiv to a nearby settlement that remained under occupation for 36 days. Following the region’s liberation, she sought to document the personal stories of Chernihiv residents. Her efforts were supported by the Chernihiv City Council’s Department of Culture and Tourism, along with a group of researchers who have since formed the Chernihiv Research Center for the Anthropology of War. The project’s archive now contains over 350 interviews, 24 of which are featured in this publication and translated into English.

The event will offer attendees a chance to meet the book’s co-editors, including Kateryna Lytvyn, Oleksandr Shevchuk, Svitlana Makhovska, Olena Boriak, Oleksandr Vasianovych, Olha Vorobiei, Anastasiia Pankova, Olha Berezovska, and translator Andrii Shataliuk.

Prior accreditation is required to attend the presentation.

• occupation
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Before the full-blown war outbreak in February 2022, Capital Tours operated across Kyiv, Lviv, and Odesa, offering guided tours of Ukraine’s landmarks. Svitozar Moiseiv, one of the agency’s guides, led sightseeing tours of the capital. However, the business came to a halt when the war escalated. 

In 2023, Svitozar received an unusual request—foreigners seeking tours of the recently liberated areas around Kyiv. Responding to the demand, he created a six-hour tour covering the outskirts of the capital. The route includes visits to Bucha, Irpin, Borodianka, Hostomel, and Moshchun—places that bear the scars of russian occupation. Svitozar often conducts private tours, beginning by sharing his personal experience at the onset of the invasion, and then taking visitors to sites where the atrocities of the occupiers unfolded. 

Moiseiv notes that most of his clients are foreigners in Kyiv for business or to visit family, and none have traveled to Ukraine solely for the tour. The six-hour tour costs around 150 euros, with a portion of the proceeds donated to support the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

• occupation
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

On December 2, Kyiv will host the presentation of the book “Prykhystok: A Startup That Saved a Million Lives” by MP Halyna Yanchenko.

The book details the eponymous initiative launched on the first day of the full-scale invasion, which helped over a million Ukrainian refugees find free temporary shelter. It is a poignant collection of the project team’s memories of the resilience, solidarity and innovation that Ukrainians demonstrated during the darkest days of the invasion.

The event will feature real-life heroes from the book – Ukrainians who endured the occupation and managed to relocate and start new lives in other cities, thanks in part to the Prykhystok (Shelter) initiative. They will tell their personal stories.

Program highlights:

– A conversation with the author about the creation of the initiative and the book.

– Stories from the book’s protagonists who were forced to find a new home and found shelter.

– A discussion about the power of social innovation and the ability of Ukrainians to unite for mutual aid.

– A book signing with the author.

Registration is required for this event.

• casualties
• culture
• occupation
• Kyiv

Ilias Sheikhisliamov, a Crimean Tatar and volunteer from the Odesa oblast, was born and raised in Crimea. After the russian occupation of the peninsula in 2014, he stayed there for another four years. Since 2019, he only visited Crimea in the summer to see his family.  Ilias met the beginning of the full-scale invasion abroad: he was studying at a university in Turkey. However, he soon decided to return to Ukraine to volunteer and support the Ukrainian army.

His professors discouraged him from returning, but he insisted and later came to Odesa. He immediately started working there and joined the NGO “Crimean Tatars of Odesa Oblast”. On March 5, 2024, Ilias learned that his father, Ali Mamutov, who was living with his family in occupied Crimea, had been arrested by the russian authorities. He learned the news from his younger brother. The occupiers falsely accused Ali Mamutov of participating in or creating a terrorist organization.

While his father was being held in a detention center in Simferopol, Ilias managed to communicate with him through the russian app Zonatelecom. However, Ali Mamutov was transferred to the russian city of Rostov, and communication with him was cut off. After his father’s arrest, Ilias decided to pursue his teenage dream of becoming a lawyer. He enrolled at the Tavrida National University, which had relocated to Kyiv after Crimea’s occupation. Ilias sees this as one of the ways to keep in touch with Crimea.

Ilias Sheikhisliamov is available for interviews, both online and offline, by prior arrangement.

Background: As of May this year, the Crimean Tatar Resource Center recorded 331 cases of political imprisonment and criminal persecution since the annexation of Crimea. Of these, 217 were against members of the Crimean Tatar community.

• casualties
• occupation
• prisoners
• russian crimes
• volunteers
• Kyiv
• Odesa

On November 20, the Media Center Ukraine will hold the event “Childhood in Captivity: How to Protect the Rights of Children in the Occupied Territories”.

Topics for discussion:

– What is the current state of children’s rights in the occupied territories?

– What is it like to grow up under occupation?

– What are the challenges of monitoring violations of children’s rights in the occupied territories?

– What can Ukrainian and international institutions do to protect children’s rights in the occupied  territories?

– What are the prospects for bringing to justice those involved in crimes against children under occupation?

Participants:

– Mariia Sulialina, Director of the Almenda Center for Civic Education;

– Ilias Sheikhisliamov, son of a political prisoner, public figure, member of the NGO “Crimean Tatars of Odesa Region”;

– Noel Calhoun, Deputy Head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine;

– Arman Akopian – Deputy Director of the Department and Head of the Unit for Children in Wartime, Department for Monitoring the Observance of Children’s Rights at the Secretariat of the Human Rights Commissioner of the Parliament of Ukraine;

– Yulia Usenko, Head of the Department for the Protection of Children’s Rights and Combating Domestic Violence of the Prosecutor General’s Office;

Background: November 20 marks the 35th anniversary of the signing of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The adoption of this document was an important step in ensuring fundamental rights for every child. In particular, Article 29 states that a child’s education should be aimed at fostering respect for the child’s parents, cultural identity, language and national values of the country in which the child lives and the country of origin.

Despite the fact that the russian federation has ratified the Convention, thus committing itself to comply with its provisions and ensure children’s rights in accordance with international standards, russia systematically violates children’s rights. Children living in the occupied territories are in a particularly vulnerable situation, as they are victims of targeted indoctrination, militarization and erasure of identity.

• children
• occupation
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Maryna Chernyshova, originally from Mariupol, a city currently under enemy control, lived through the early days of the full-scale invasion alongside her family. The family spent over a month under occupation, seeking shelter from relentless shelling in their basement. During this harrowing period, it was their cat, Marsi, who provided emotional support, offering comfort and helping the family navigate through an incredibly difficult time.

Once they were able to escape Mariupol, Marsi accompanied them as the family relocated to the Ternopil region. There, Maryna found herself inspired to create a space for others in need of emotional relief. Noticing the abundance of stray cats in Ternopil, she decided to open a cat café, a place for people to find solace and relaxation.

With a combination of personal savings and funding from the National Network of Local Philanthropy Development, Maryna launched the café, which is now home to two previously homeless cats. The café offers a variety of activities aimed at providing psychological support to its visitors, including stress-relief meditation sessions led by experts. In the future, Maryna hopes to channel a portion of the café’s profits into building an animal shelter to further help animals in need.

• animals
• casualties
• occupation
• women
• Mariupol
• Ternopil

Mariia is only 18 now, and her story is one of courage and resilience. Before the all-out invasion outbreak, she lived in Sievierodonetsk, Luhansk region, now under occupation, with her stepfather and younger brother. In 2022, her family relocated to Novorossiysk, a city in russia near the border. However, Mariia opposed the move and made the brave decision to return to Ukraine on her own. This year, she began studying at a university in Kyiv, pursuing her dream of becoming an artist. Her boyfriend is currently serving at the front.

Mariia stands ready to share her story with journalists in Kyiv.

• children
• occupation
• Kyiv

Tetiana Tipakova, originally from Donetsk and a longtime resident of Berdiansk in Zaporizhia Oblast (now under occupation), spent nearly 30 years working in a travel agency. When russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, she became an active voice in support of her country, organizing peaceful protests in Berdiansk.

For her efforts, Tetiana was abducted by russian forces. Blindfolded and taken to a detention center, she endured two days of interrogation and brutal torture, including electric shocks to her fingers and a mock execution. She was forced to record a video apology before being released. However, the next day, she was captured again, held for four more days, and subjected to further abuse.

After this harrowing experience, Tetiana made the decision to flee Berdiansk. She crossed more than 20 checkpoints to reach Zaporizhia, where she founded a women’s initiative group. This eventually led to the creation of the NGO “Ridna Stezhka” (Home Footpath), dedicated to helping displaced people and supporting fellow Ukrainians.

In the early stages, Tetiana’s organization provided food, medicine, and support for evacuees, helping them settle into their new lives in Zaporizhia. Within the first year, the NGO successfully applied for 24 grants, winning 3.

By 2024, Tetiana had secured financial backing to launch an educational space offering computer literacy classes, movie screenings, and psychological support. Her organization is now expanding its mission to empower women through education, training, and ongoing support in Zaporizhia.

• casualties
• occupation
• prisoners
• russian crimes
• women
• Zaporizhzhia

“We haven’t lived long enough; we want to live a little longer.” This poignant statement from Nazar, spoken when he was just nine, resonates deeply today as he turns twelve. Born in the Luhansk region, which is now occupied, Nazar’s childhood has been shaped by ongoing war.

In 2022, he was forced to flee his home amid intense rocket attacks by the russian army. His mother, a psychotherapist at an art school, dedicated her efforts to helping children in eastern Ukraine, often traveling to remote villages with mobile brigades. Tragically, during the occupation, their family home and school were looted.

Despite the upheaval, Nazar’s passion for nature conservation remains unwavering. Since the age of four, he has actively participated in initiatives to protect the environment, creating reusable shopper bags, organizing school theater performances, and leading community clean-up efforts.

Nazar is also a contributor to the book “War through the Voices of Children,” a collection of children’s reflections on the impact of war that has recently made its way into American bookstores.

Journalists wishing to learn more about Nazar’s inspiring story can arrange interviews with him in the Kyiv region.

• children
• ecology
• occupation
• Kyiv