Among the localities taken over by the Ukrainian army in recent days is the village of Verbyvka, in the Kharkiv region. Occupied by Russian troops, it was badly damaged by the fighting because it was almost on the front line for several months. The villagers most often lived holed up in their cellars, without running water and without electricity.
With our special correspondents in Verbyvka, Anastasia Becchio and Boris Vichith
In front of a grocery store with closed doors above which floats the Ukrainian flag, a few dozen people are waiting to receive humanitarian aid. Passing military vehicles are greeted, some chant “glory to Ukraine “.
On his bike, Anatoly, retired, has just loaded a bottle of oil and two cans of canned food. ” I am a little lost “, he concedes. ” On the one hand, I feel joy, but I don’t really know what to do, everything is still a bit chaotic. There is no electricity, we lack everything. These months of occupation, everything has become rare “says the retiree.
At the entrance to the village, below the road, Ukrainian soldiers inspect a tank turret marked with the letter Z. If the inhabitants are relieved by the departure of the Russians, serenity is not yet there. ” People who lived through this occupation are scared, very disturbed “explains the mayor, Oleksei Perero.
“And then, for 5 months, they had no source of income. In 2-3 days, retirement pensions will begin to be distributed. As for the businesses, as they are private businesses and the owners have left, we don’t know when they will reopen, it’s uncertainty ”
Since the beginning of the war, the village has been emptied of half of its inhabitants. There are 1,500 left, maybe less, says the mayor. At the start of the counter-offensive, some left for Russia.
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