Russian bombs turn Ukraine border village into ‘hell’
Al JazeeraWandering among the ruins, Svitlana Zavaly was desperately searching for anything that could be salvaged from the rubble of her home destroyed by a Russian bomb in northeastern Ukraine. “We’ve got nothing left,” said the 67-year-old resident of the village of Velyka Pysarivka which lies just five kilometres from the Russian border. For about 10 days in March, Russian bombs, shells and rockets rained down on the village and others along the frontier, in apparent retribution for incursions into Russia by pro-Ukraine Russian fighters. Not far from Velyka Pysarivka, groups of pro-Ukraine Russian volunteer fighters opposed to Russian President Vladimir Putin carried out cross-border raids, with the clashes lasting a few days. Local authorities in Velyka Pysarivka and surrounding villages recorded 567 strikes, including 200 from powerful aerial bombs, over a fortnight.