"It feels like no one will survive there": Ukraine war reaches 1,000th day
We've caught up with Zhenya Shkill from Bath, who recently lost three relatives in Zaporizhzhia
Last updated 20th Nov 2024
As the war in Ukraine enters its 1,000th day, a woman from Kyiv who now lives in Bath says no one in her home country can be sure of their survival.
Zhenya Shkill has lived in the West Country for years and has been fundraising since the war began to help people back home, but earlier this month lost three relatives when an apartment block in Zaporizhzhia was hit by a Russian airstrike.
Hits Radio has been speaking to her about her loss, as the government says Western allies must "come together" to back Ukraine.
WARNING: You may find some of the details described below, distressing.
"They spent 12 hours trying to find the bodies"
Less than two weeks ago, on Thursday 7th November, at around lunch time, Zhenya's second cousin Sonya, her one year old son Adam and Sonya's grandmother Tetiana were among dozens at home in a four storey Zaporizhzhia apartment block, when it was hit by a Russian Soviet era glide bomb known as a KAB.
Sonya, Adam and Tetiana were among 10 killed, while more than 40 were injured.
"Usually those bombs, when they hit the roof or the wall, they explode," Zhenya said.
"This one didn't explode. It flew somehow through the wall, between the second and the third floor and exploded inside, so as a result the two top floors were thrown up, and Sonya with her family lived in the third floor, and the two bottom floors completely collapsed...
"There's nothing left. This part of the building is completely destroyed."
Footage shared on Telegram in the aftermath shows emergency service workers trawling through huge piles of rubble, as the building stands, clearly blown apart, in the background.
Zhenya shared with us the harrowing way in which Sonya's body was identified.
"Sonya's body was recovered first at about one o'clock at night," she said.
"They couldn't really understand if it was her or not, she was misidentified first, and they told me yesterday how they actually found out it was her..."
A doctor helping with the search for survivors suggested squeezing her nipple.
"The milk came out, so they understood it was her because she was still breastfeeding the boy," Zhenya said.
"Then they found Grandma and the boy together because she was trying to put him to sleep at the moment when it happened."
Photos and videos shared with Hits Radio show Ukrainian artillery shells labelled with "for Sonya", "for Adam", and "for Tetiana", being fired at Russian positions.
What is the West doing?
To mark the war's 1,000th day, the UK government has announced a further £7.5 million of funding for new attack and surveillance drones in Ukraine, with other allies pledging a further £16 million.
Defence Secretary John Healey said: "The UK has stood side by side with our Ukrainian allies since day one of Putin's illegal, full-scale invasion - leading international support, training 50,000 recruits and supplying weapons, drones and other crucial military kit.
"1,000 days after Putin initiated his full-scale invasion, our commitment to Ukraine remains ironclad. President Zelensky and the Ukrainian people will have our fullest support for as long as it takes.
"As we look towards a winter of continued Russian attacks on military and civilian targets, it is critical that international partners and allies come together to back Ukraine and ensure that Putin does not succeed."
On Wednesday, Parliament will debate the second reading of the Financial Assistance to Ukraine Bill, which will confirm the UK's £2.26 billion loan to Kyiv for further military equipment.
Meanwhile, armed forces minister Luke Pollard will visit Operation Interflex - the code name for the UK armed forces programme that has helped train Ukrainian recruits - training in the east of England on Tuesday to meet troops.
It comes after the Government announced that more than 50,000 Ukrainian soldiers had been trained on UK soil since the start of the Kremlin's invasion in 2022.
While briefly living in Bristol after the start of the war as a refugee, Sonya worked as a Ukrainian interpreter at a military base involved in Operation Interflex.
Following the birth of her son Adam however, she decided to return to Ukraine to be near her dad.
Zhenya's fundraising
Since the war began Zhenya has created the charitable group Friends of Oleksandriya, which has seen residents in the Bath area fundraise for the Ukrainian city, which has a similar population and characteristics to Bath.
To date the group has raised thousands of pounds for equipment including electricity generators and school supplies.
Following the deaths of Sonya, Adam and Tetiana, Zhenya worries if it is enough.
"We can send presents, as many as we want to children, but if they are killed before that it won't bring a smile to their faces," she said tearfully.
"Actually just yesterday we bought a 200 kilowatt generator for one of the hospitals in Oleksandriya and we're planning to send it with wrapped presents and some English books in the beginning of December.
"I just don't know if people will last until they get this help."
The use of long range missiles by Ukraine
Until this week, the Ukrainian military has been forbidden from using long range missiles, supplied by the West, to hit targets deep inside Russia.
Outgoing US President Joe Biden has now sanctioned the use of US made weapons however, after months of pressure from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
On Monday, the British Government would not be drawn on whether restrictions on the use of UK made Storm Shadow missiles would also be eased.
If you would like to find out more about the group Friends of Oleksandriya and see how you can help, click here.