This went on for two months. All this time they did not wash. It was terribly cold, and they sat in the trenches. He tried to stay awake at night to keep warm. Many men froze their hands and feet, fingers and toes. That’s how they lived there—cold, hunger, and filth.
Full-scale invasion and national resilience, broadcasted live.
-
Commander accused of stealing food from soldiers
13/ "They got a terrible commander – maybe it was better in other units. He abused them. Most of the food they received was later seen in the shops [presumably sold by the commander]. The men were left hungry like dogs.
-
Testimony on hunger in the last century
Each day they were given one thin slice of bread and a bowl of porridge. My husband used to say, "I just didn't realise it could be like that in the 21st century." He had a piece of lard, he cut off a little bit at a time and sucked it at night to satisfy his hunger.
-
Wife recounts husband’s forced departure in uniform
11/ "I didn't recognise my husband," Elena says, "he was in military uniform. They had been given helmets and rifles from the 1950s. He took my hand and said: "Bye, maybe we won't see each other again." They are being loaded onto wagons to be taken to an unknown destination.
-
Women, children taken away crying, no tools
"There is a huge crowd of women with children, all weeping. They were taken away and communication with them was lost." Her husband later told her what had happened next. "They were brought to a bare field and told to dig trenches. They were given no shovels."
-
Husband’s urgent call: A chaotic farewell at the train station
10/ "Then my husband called me and said: "Come to the railway station tomorrow, they are taking us somewhere." It was a chaotic scene with hundreds of women looking for their husbands to say goodbye.
-
Elena’s account of inhumane conditions
9/ Elena recalls: "They slept on bare slabs, on the ground. For five days they were given no food or water. Their wives were brought to them. Twelve people died just there, because they mobilised everyone with all kinds of diseases."
-
53-year-old man mobilized despite limits sent to factory
The husband of another woman, Elena from Ilovaisk, was mobilized despite being over the age limit; he is now 53. A former miner with hernias, he was told he would receive military training but was instead sent to an abandoned factory in Makiivka.
-
Soldier left without papers or discharge after Dec 31
Only on the 31st of December was he allowed to go home. He still has no military card, no personal file, no dog tag. And he has not been discharged from the army, despite the two reports he wrote in the spring about his dismissal on reaching the age limit.
-
Minor with occupational diseases in military camp
At the enterprise where he works, they were told that they would go to a two-week military training camp. He has no military specialty; he served as a conscript in the Soviet Union. He is a miner – a mining laborer – with occupational diseases.