after 6 months, the inhabitants hard hit by the bombardments

It’s a dull national holiday in Kharkiv, eastern Ukraine. This city, which has become the symbol of Russian bombardments since the start of the invasion, has ordered a curfew for fear of attacks from Moscow on this extremely symbolic day. Six months ago, the inhabitants lived the first hours of the invasion. Today, there are not many of them still present on the spot. At the foot of a building, only four people remained to live in Kharkiv. “We’re not afraid, that’s over, we close our windows, we go down here because it’s less dangerous. We sit down, we’re like a family, we help each other”testifies one of the women, who remained in her apartment.

No water on the floors or electricity since a shell hit the third floor. Hunger here is a nightmare. Two elderly residents live on the 14th and 16th floors. One of them staggers up the stairs, but insists on staying in her apartment. The metro which was crowded for weeks at the time of the attack is no longer crowded although some residents still sleep here at night. “It’s the only place I feel safe,” admits a resident. The ordered curfew is being strictly adhered to as shelling intensified overnight and into the morning.