War in Ukraine: in Irpine, between fear and hope for those who remain
Audio 01:46
A man walking through rubble after shelling in the town of Irpine.
(Illustration).
REUTERS - SERHII NUZHNENKO
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
In Irpine, a lock town on the road to Kiev, northwest of the capital, intense fighting took place this Friday, March 11, the Russian army is advancing.
Many residents have already fled the city, but a minority of them prefer to stay.
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From our special correspondent in Irpine
,
Pierre Olivier
This hamlet at the entrance to Irpine has become a ghost town.
In the deserted streets, houses gutted by the bombardments.
Stray dogs and cats no longer know where to go.
A little further on, soldiers scan the horizon with their binoculars.
The bombs are not far away.
In front of their half-destroyed house, Svetlana and Valery, 63, watch a saucepan on a makeshift fire.
“
There, we prepare the meal, we make tea and fire to keep warm,
confides Valery
Look!
All our windows are blown.
The cold comes inside.
We put tarpaulins on the roof because it was bombed.
Two days ago the artillery hit our house.
Several houses were burned down.
The village church was hit.
They even destroyed the statue of St George
”.
Trust in Ukrainian soldiers…
Little by little the Russian troops on the ground are approaching the village
.
“I'm very, very scared
,” Svetlana said in a knotted voice.
Her husband continues.
“
We don't know what's going on.
Of course it's scary!
We have no internet, no radio, no television.
The government hasn't told us anything, we have no news!
»
Their daughter safe in the West, this couple prefers to stay here.
In their usually peaceful village.
A few streets away, a man is gardening on his small plot.
He is a widower, he says.
“
I'm staying, because this is my home!
I'm scared yes, like everyone else!
They're bombing all the time, but what else?
I have nowhere to go
”
With his back bent, his features drawn, an old man wanders down the street, bundled up in an oversized coat.
“
I stay here!
As long as my house is standing, I stay in my house!
If it is destroyed, I will go with it
”.
The inhabitants who still live here did not want to flee through the humanitarian corridors.
They know their lives are on borrowed time, but continue to trust Ukrainian soldiers to defend them.
All of our daily, live coverage of the war in Ukraine.
© FMM Graphic Studio
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