Reportage

Ukraine: Lyman, a city that the Russian occupation has further fractured

Audio 01:12

The scene of a residential building damaged after a Russian shelling in the liberated region of Lyman, Donetsk Oblast, November 7, 2022. AP - Andriy Andriyenko

Text by: RFI Follow

1 min

The town of Lyman, heavily bombarded in the early months of the war, was recently liberated.

After four months of Russian occupation, it still seems divided.

In the Donbass, tensions between pro-Russians and pro-Ukrainians have been present since well before the conflict broke out in 2014. A wound that has opened up again since the beginning of the year.

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With our special correspondent, 

Under the winter grayness,

seems like a ghost town.

Houses have been gutted by the bombardments.

Even the church was not spared.

"

 ," says the priest.

Because of our sins, God allowed all of this to happen.

I don't want to politicize my church.

In any case, it comes back to politics.

The man of the Church refuses to evoke the tensions which still weigh on his city.

Vladimir gropes his way with a hat on his head and an empty water bottle to fill at the church well.

Russia did not invade Ukraine, it defended itself because Ukraine was going to attack it.

Russia just attacked to defend Donbass.

But this region will never be in Ukraine again in any case.

In this city, the Russian occupation further fractured

 and pro-Ukrainians.

Cigarette in hand, Nikolai, pro-Ukrainian, era.

His house was blown up by a strike.

There are too many pro-Russians here, especially on this side of town.

I think those who are pro-Russian, we should drive them to the border, tell them “this is Russia, go ahead, goodbye”.

►Read again: Donbass: along the front line of Lyman

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• Ukraine

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• christianity

• Russia