Ukraine war: They sang of victory - then a Russian rocket struck - BBC News

Two young Ukrainian women were killed as they sat on a bench. Orla Guerin met those they left behind.

14 hours agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingRelated TopicsWar in UkraineImage source, Halyna SpitsynaImage caption, Svitlana Siemieikina and Kristina Spitsyna shared a love of music and their countryBy Orla GuerinBBC NewsDeath came suddenly from a clear blue sky, as it often does now in Ukraine. In August, a Russian rocket slammed to earth killing two young women as they sat on a bench in a playground, in the shadow of a church.

Their names were Kristina Spitsyna and Svitlana Siemieikina, and they are among the more than 10,000 civilians who have lost their lives since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

The UN believes the actual number of men, women and children who have been killed is "considerably higher".

Russia's war in Ukraine is now a constant. The horror has become familiar. Many deaths are not reported in detail, but we wanted to tell the story of the lives, and last moments, of just two of those killed.

When the breeze whispers in the trees, Halyna Spitsyna feels it is the presence of her daughter, Kristina. "The wind blows, and you think this is the soul of your child, hugging you," she says.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-66986975?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA

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