Heroes Of Ukraine: 53

From Yahoo:

“Heart-wrenching photos show Ukrainians mourning loss of loved ones”

(A woman arrives to pray at Church of the Most Holy Apostles Peter and Paul as the Russian invasion rages on in Lviv, Ukraine, on March 18.)

Heart-wrenching photographs show Ukrainians mourning the loss of their loved ones as Russia’s onslaught against the neighboring nation continues to kill civilians, including women and children. Four-time Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Carol Guzy captured the tragic moments across Ukraine, including in the historic city of Lviv, which has been the target of recent Russian airstrikes that have left people running for their lives.

(A funeral service is held for Ivan Skrypnuk, who was killed in a Russian airstrike at a military base in Yavoriv, close to the Polish border, on March 17.)

In many of those bombardments, death follows. Locals have been holding funerals for civilians and fallen soldiers killed in Russia’s war. According to Guzy, the daughter of one soldier who was killed in an airstrike said the shock of the shelling was so strong that the soldiers’ bulletproof vests fell apart as they wore them. In one photo taken by Guzy, a young child is seen holding what appears to be a Ukrainian flag as men with shovels bury a fallen soldier at a nearby cemetery.

(The funeral of the soldiers Mykola Dmytrovych and Roman Fedorovich in Starychi on March 16.)

In another chilling photograph, a woman is consoled as she breaks down in tears in front of a casket strewn with flower bouquets. One moment captured by Guzy shows a heartbroken mother, Maria, emotionally embracing her son, who is seen in uniform lying in a casket at the Church of the Most Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Lviv. Because of the widespread devastation, it’s unclear how many people have been killed so far in the war. NATO estimated this week that 7,000 to 15,000 Russian troops have been killed since Feb. 24, when Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his military to invade Ukraine. Russia, which has denied that its invasion is a “war,” has claimed that its number of fatalities is far lower. The wreckage of Russian vehicles along Ukrainian roadways suggests the Kremlin’s military has suffered significant damage.

(A funeral is held for two fallen soldiers, Mykola Dmytrovych and Roman Fedorovich, at Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Starychi, Ukraine, on March 16.)

It’s unclear how many Ukrainian soldiers have died, but President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier this month that roughly 1,300 troops had been killed in what he called a “war of annihilation.”  According to the United Nations, more than 1,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed in the war, including dozens of children. But that estimate is conservative and based on confirmed deaths; the U.N. said the actual tally is likely to be “considerably higher.”

(A Ukrainian soldier prays at Church of the Most Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Lviv.)

The U.S. this week accused Russian forces of committing war crimes by attacking Ukrainian civilians. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the determination was made based on a “careful review of available information from public and intelligence sources.” “We’ve seen numerous credible reports of indiscriminate attacks and attacks deliberately targeting civilians, as well as other atrocities,” Blinken said in a statement. “Russia’s forces have destroyed apartment buildings, schools, hospitals, critical infrastructure, civilian vehicles, shopping centers, and ambulances, leaving thousands of innocent civilians killed or wounded.” Last week, President Biden called Putin a “war criminal.” White House press secretary Jen Psaki followed up by telling reporters that Biden was “speaking from his heart and speaking from what he’s seen on television, which is barbaric actions by a brutal dictator through his invasion of a foreign country.”

(Tanya, seen here holding a patch from the uniform of her father, fallen soldier Oleh Yaschyshyn, said the shock wave from the Russian airstrike was so strong that soldiers’ bulletproof vests fell apart.)

In an address to NATO on Thursday, Zelensky again pleaded for help from Biden and European leaders, saying Ukraine was in a “gray zone” and was struggling to fight off Russian forces. “A month of unpunished destruction of the peaceful state, and with it — the whole architecture of global security. All this is before the eyes of the whole world,” he said.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/heart-wrenching-photos-show-ukrainians-mourning-loss-of-loved-ones-090055615.html