A year on from the Kyiv area massacres
STORY: A grim mission is unfolding in the Ukrainian town of Borodianka, about 30 miles northwest of Kyiv.
These three men were buried for a year, without anyone knowing and officials are working to confirm their identities.
Nearby, there are reminders of the men's everyday lives.
A couple packs of cigarettes and a comb.
They’re among the nearly 300 people from Kyiv region who are still missing since Russian forces marched towards the capital last spring.
“Yet another grave,” says Kyiv Region Police Chief Andrii Nebytov.
He said a local man discovered the three men - shot dead last year - and buried them.
The resident moved abroad but let police know where they were buried when he came back.
Some of the war’s worst civilian massacres took place in this region, which includes Bucha and Irpin.
Russia has repeatedly denied that its forces committed atrocities or deliberately attacked civilians.
Meanwhile, in the eastern city of Bakhmut, Ukrainian forces are clinging to positions in the war’s bloodiest battle.
Trenches are being dug nearby.
A Ukrainian military official characterized the enemy as “storming the city.”
All while the founder of Russia’s Wagner mercenary force published a video purportedly showing his fighters inside.
Weary residents are continuing to leave.
This family says they traveled about 12 miles through mud to take shelter in a Russian-controlled city in Donetsk.
People are also seeking shelter near the frontlines of Zaporizhzhia.
Police said at least four people died when Russian missiles crashed into this apartment block overnight.
A few miles away, this group is hunkering down in a basement to shield themselves from shelling.
Despite having no functioning utilities, they say cooking keeps them grounded.
“The war will end. We will set the table,” says this 67 year old woman.
She said they’re hoping to be able to gather around a different table some day in the future, with the ability to reflect on the reality they’re living now.
