Themes by tag: russian crimes

On July 11, the Media Center Ukraine will hold a briefing with the Head of the Press Service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, focusing on the consequences of the russian missile attack on Ukraine on July 8.

For reference: On July 8, russia launched a powerful missile attack on Ukraine. The missiles caused significant destruction to residential buildings and civilian structures, including a strike on the Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv. The attack targeted Kyiv, Kryvyi Rih, Dnipro, and other Ukrainian cities, resulting in numerous deaths and injuries.

• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Dozens of volunteers, including members of the Los Solomas community, are currently working in Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district, where a kindergarten and nearby houses were damaged by the missile hit on July 8.

Volunteers are engaged in tasks such as clearing construction debris and covering shattered windows with plastic.

Journalists are welcome to report on the volunteers’ efforts.

For reference: On July 8, russian forces launched a missile attack on Kyiv, damaging 129 buildings in the city. The attack resulted in 34 fatalities. As of the morning of July 10, 38 people injured in the attack remain hospitalized, with 6 in serious condition.

• reconstruction
• russian crimes
• volunteers
• Kyiv

Kateryna Lukiienko hails from the small village of Zalyman in the Kharkiv region, home to about 800 people before the full-scale invasion. When the all-out war erupted, Zalyman quickly fell under enemy control. Kateryna, along with her sister Lidiia and her children, was trapped in the village with no communication. Determined to document the atrocities, Kateryna began recording everything she witnessed. She took pictures, made videos, and kept detailed notes, compiling evidence of russian crimes in the region. During this time, she survived a russian shelling that left her with a traumatic brain injury. Her collected evidence, including testimonies, photos, and videos, has been submitted to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

Following the village’s liberation, Kateryna and her family relocated to the Chernihiv region. She is currently awaiting state compensation for their destroyed home in Zaliman.

Kateryna Lukiienko remains in the Chernihiv region and is available for interviews, both online and in person.

• occupation
• russian crimes
• women
• Chernihiv

Anna and Oleh’s journey began in 2020 when they met while Oleh was serving in the Azov Brigade. Their connection blossomed from phone calls and letters into a committed relationship. Their daughter was born just before the outbreak of the full-scale war.

Oleh and his twin brother Vitalii both served in the Azov Brigade, defending Mariupol from the war’s outset. In April 2022, while attempting to reach the Azovstal steel plant, their unit was ambushed. Vitaliy was killed, and Oleh, though wounded, managed to reach Azovstal before being captured a month later.

On the night of July 28-29, 2022, Oleh and 192 fellow prisoners were detained in Volnovakha Penal Colony No. 120 in Olenivka. Several explosions that night killed over 50 Azov Brigade members and injured more than a hundred. When russian media released lists of the wounded and deceased, Anna was horrified to see her husband’s name on both. Later, she discovered that Oleh had survived. Since then, Anna has tirelessly worked to secure his release, joining the Olenivka Community NGO to aid her efforts.

Anna Lobova is currently in Zhytomyr and is available for interviews, both online and in person.

• military
• prisoners
• russian crimes
• women
• Zhytomyr

On July 8, Media Center Ukraine will host a presentation of the trailer for the film “People of Steel.” The event will also feature a presentation of results of the pre-premiere screening of the film about the Mariupol defenders in front of European diplomats.

The documentary, which took more than a year to complete, uses unique footage from the prison in Olenivka and Mariupol, where the russians committed numerous war crimes.

Participants:

• Serhii Fomenko, musician and director, frontman of the band Mandry;
• Kateryna Prokopenko, Association Azovstal Defenders’ Families;
• Andrii Rizol, Head of the association “Watch Ukrainian!”;
• Petro Yatsenko, representative of the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

For reference: This film was developed as part of the Culture VS War and Between Light and Evil projects, involving the NGO Association of Azovstal Defenders’ Families and the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

IMPORTANT NOTICE! Starting from the beginning of July, Media Center Ukraine will be located in the comfortable public space Urban Space 500, at 9 Hrinchenko Street in Kyiv. All events will take place there.

• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Mariia Aleksieievych is 26 years old, for two of which she has been waiting for her husband Serhii Aleksieievych, a soldier from Azov Regiment. On May 16, 2022, he carried out the order and surrendered to the enemy.

Mariia and Serhii met before the full-scale invasion. Both studied in Khmelnytskyi, majoring in psychology. The couple lived for several years in a civil marriage, and officially married online in April 2022, when Serhii was already in surrounded Mariupol.

While Serhii was fighting in Mariupol, he tried to get in touch, asked his wife to hold on, work and study. The last time Mariia communicated with her husband was on May 13, 2022. The woman came across a video where she saw Serhii being captured, later she found confirmation that he was in Olenivka. After the explosion in the barracks of the Olenivka colony, the woman found her lover’s name on the list of the wounded.

Mariia says that Serhii Aleksieievych was officially recognized as a prisoner of war only on August 31, 2023. Every once in a while Mariia learns about her husband’s condition from former captives who return in prisoner exchanges.

Currently, Maria heads Olenivka Community NGO. She is also actively involved in public work to investigate the events in the Olenivka colony, bring the culprits to justice, and help Ukrainian prisoners of war and their families.

Mariia Aleksieievych is in Vinnytsia region and is ready to communicate with the media, both in person and online.

For reference: On the night of July 29, 2022, the russian federation committed a terrorist attack, setting off an explosion in the barracks of the penal colony in Olenivka, which housed Ukrainian prisoners of war. At least 50 defenders of Azovstal were killed in the blast.

• military
• prisoners
• russian crimes
• women
• Vinnytsia

Media professionals are cordially invited to a press tour on June 28 to witness the unveiling of the newly restored library in the once-occupied village of Rudnytske, nestled in Kyiv region. In 2022, the village fell victim to russian military aggression, resulting in the destruction of its school, infrastructure, and numerous private residences.

Among the casualties was the local club, which housed the village library. Thanks to generous benefactors, the club has been transformed into a vibrant creative hub for Rudnytske’s youth. The latest endeavor in this revitalization effort is the restoration of the library, featuring complete refurbishment of its premises—walls, ceilings, and floors—alongside the acquisition of new furniture and a selection of books.

The library’s grand reopening will feature a presentation of “Piddubnyi: Victories and Unforgiven Love for Ukraine” by author Serhii Smahlicuk. Additionally, the philanthropists behind the restoration project will host 3-5 summer events for locals, including book presentations, literary readings, and poetry evenings.

During the press tour, a press conference will be convened with Natalia Vasylenko, head of the branch library, Oleksandr Pakholiuk, director of the MHP-Gromadi Foundation, and Iryna Borzak, village head, in attendance. Attendees will have the opportunity to be among the inaugural visitors and receive Rudnytske library cards.

Complimentary shuttle services will be provided. Journalists must secure accreditation for the event, with registration open until 12:00 on June 27.

• occupation
• reconstruction
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Folklorist Yaryna Sizyk, animation director Maria Ozirna, and the Oleksii Shovkunenko Kherson Art Museum have launched a project focused on restoring paintings seized by russians during the city’s occupation. Museum staff estimate that about ten thousand artworks were taken. The project’s goal is to recreate these stolen pieces.

The team has successfully reproduced Mykhailo Bryansky’s painting “Portrait of a Girl in an Embroidered Dress.” Yaryna and Maria spent a month preparing this first piece, which was not only repainted but also modernized and animated. Ukrainian model and singer Daria Astafieva helped bring the painting to life, transforming herself into the girl in an embroidered dress made from the stolen canvas. During the animation, they used a shirt embroidered by Inna Mykutska, a Kherson guide, during the occupation.

The project founders are now preparing for their next restoration and are in discussions with Ukrainian influencers. 

Yaryna Sizyk and Maria Ozirna are available for interviews with journalists in Kyiv.

• culture
• russian crimes
• Kherson
• Kyiv

On May 23, 2024, a Russian missile attack struck the Factor-Druk printing house in Kharkiv. The assault resulted in the destruction of more than 50,000 books, including those published by Vivat Publishing House. Despite numerous offers to purchase the damaged books, Vivat’s CEO, Yulia Orlova, declined and decided to send the salvaged books for exhibition at the Library of Congress and various foreign museums.

The printing house is currently assessing the damage and planning its restoration. Orlova mentioned that the Howard G. Buffett Foundation has expressed willingness to fund the purchase of new equipment for the facility.

Yulia Orlova, who is currently abroad, is available for online interviews with journalists.

For reference: Factor-Druk is one of Europe’s largest printing houses, producing books for nearly all Ukrainian publishers. The missile strike resulted in the deaths of 7 people and injuries to 21 others.

• casualties
• dead
• russian crimes
• Kharkiv

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the Center for Civil Liberties, and the Kharkiv Human Rights Group will present a submission to the International Criminal Court (ICC) detailing hate crimes committed by russians against Ukrainians. Ukrainian and foreign media are invited to the presentation, which will be held on June 6 at the Media Center Ukraine – Ukrinform.

The submission highlights the accountability of five prominent russian propagandists—Vladimir Solovyov, Margarita Simonyan, Dmitry Kiselyov, Dmitry Medvedev, and Sergey Mardan—for inciting hatred against Ukrainians. It also addresses the responsibility of Alexey Gromov, the first deputy chief of staff of the presidential administration of russia.

The document is based on an analysis of 526 hours of broadcasts, from which over 300 statements were quantified as hate speech. These remarks not only urged russian troops to capture, mistreat, harm, or forcibly displace Ukrainians but also sought to garner approval from the russian populace for these heinous acts.

Journalists wishing to attend the event must be accredited.

• russian crimes
• Kyiv