“It was a sunny, warm day, starkly contrasting with the feelings that began to overwhelm us from the first glimpses of the village. We were greeted by shattered, burnt houses and shot-up, mutilated local vehicles. Sorrow hung in the air, permeating all three and a half streets.”
“The basement of the school, where the entire village was held, was the epicentre of horror. Locals recounted that they slept in turns, literally standing up, tying themselves with scarves to pipes, as there was less than a square metre per person.”
“People kept notes on the walls, 'calendars', to somehow keep track of time. Nearby, there were lists: one of those who didn't survive the conditions of captivity, and another of those who were killed. Various children's drawings were also there. Someone had drawn a football field, someone else — their favourite cat, Marquis.”
“I heard the most horrific stories. One was from a single mother whose son was killed by the occupiers right before her eyes, and how her other son was taken to the forest and never seen again. About how infants were lifted to a small technical window near the ceiling so they could breathe fresh air. About how [Russian soldiers] crushed cars with a tank simply because the people here 'lived too well'.”
“But there were also those who, despite numerous sufferings, remained resilient and smiled at every meeting. Their inner strength incredibly impressed me.”
“It was heartening to see how those who were in an absolutely devastated moral state at our first meeting gradually found the strength to recover. Bit by bit, everything began to regain new life.”
Yahidne is a small village near Chernihiv, which was under Russian occupation for 26 days in the spring of 2022. The invaders held 300 people captive in the basement of a school, in an area of about 130 square metres. Fifteen elderly residents of Yahidne died there due to poor conditions, including a lack of fresh air. Additionally, some captives were taken out of the school building by the occupiers and killed.
Photographer Pasha Yuz took these photographs in May 2022 during a trip to Yahidne along with volunteers from the Repair Together initiative, which organises construction camps in villages affected by the war.
“It was a sunny, warm day, starkly contrasting with the feelings that began to overwhelm us from the first glimpses of the village. We were greeted by shattered, burnt houses and shot-up, mutilated local vehicles. Sorrow hung in the air, permeating all three and a half streets.”
“The basement of the school, where the entire village was held, was the epicentre of horror. Locals recounted that they slept in turns, literally standing up, tying themselves with scarves to pipes, as there was less than a square metre per person.”
“People kept notes on the walls, 'calendars', to somehow keep track of time. Nearby, there were lists: one of those who didn't survive the conditions of captivity, and another of those who were killed. Various children's drawings were also there. Someone had drawn a football field, someone else — their favourite cat, Marquis.”
“I heard the most horrific stories. One was from a single mother whose son was killed by the occupiers right before her eyes, and how her other son was taken to the forest and never seen again. About how infants were lifted to a small technical window near the ceiling so they could breathe fresh air. About how [Russian soldiers] crushed cars with a tank simply because the people here 'lived too well'.”
“But there were also those who, despite numerous sufferings, remained resilient and smiled at every meeting. Their inner strength incredibly impressed me.”
