Source: Suspilne Odesa, 19th of March, 2024. Link.

 

This is what happened on 20th of June 2022 in occupied Kherson. Kateryna’s sister-in-law received a message that the Russians were breaking down Kateryna’s door. It was late at night and the sister-in-law could not go immediately to see Kateryna due to the curfew that was imposed in occupied Kherson. Early in the morning the following day she got there and found Kateryna had been raped and tortured to death with a cable tie round her neck. Next to her lifeless body was her three-year-old son. He had also been tortured with a cable tie around his neck. The sister-in-law took the tie off the child’s neck and started to resuscitate him. Luckily, she managed to do it. It was her brother’s family, a happy family who loved each other. They had a nice house and everything they needed in the house. And Kateryna had wanted to have another child. They had plans for the future. But then the full-scale war broke out. Her husband went to the front leaving his beloved wife and son behind. Then Kherson was occupied by the Russians. Kateryna was killed in her own house. The sister-in-law believed the neighbours must have heard Kateryna’s screams as it was summer and the windows of the house were open and broken. She believed that the neighbours heard the screams of the child but no one came to their rescue. There were no witnesses. She phoned her brother and shouted what had happened and there was shock on the other end of the line. She had to take pictures of the crime scene as her brother had asked her to do for the investigation to prove that Kateryna had died because of torture and rape. She had been beaten up severely and raped and had a cable tie around her neck. Her son saw it all. He himself was terribly beaten up. The Russian torturers had put out their cigarette stubs on the child’s face and neck.

 

The local authorities came to investigate the case. The chief physician of the hospital and the head of the garrison. They demonstrated a very bad attitude to the surviving child saying that he was retarded. Naturally the child was in shock as only an hour ago he was saved from that loop around his neck and could not say a word. Besides he was suffering from the beating up and clinical death.

 

Kateryna’s sister-in-law decided to leave Kherson as soon as they could hide the traces of torture on the child’s face and neck. Besides she was scared for their lives. In two weeks she managed to disguise the traces of torture with make up so that they could not be identified by the Russians.

 

They drove for three days, covering 850 km from Kherson to Odesa. That is they had to make detours and pass thirty Russian checkpoints. When she was leaving one of her neighbours pleaded with her not to go as she was sure that they would be shot by the Russians at the first checkpoint. So she was counting the checkpoints. At one point there was an eighteen-kilometre line of cars. Some people died in their cars as it was scorching hot and some were sick people trying to escape. One epileptic man died and another woman who had had a stroke died too. The sister-in-law was trying to escape with a child who had nearly died of beating and torture. And she was scared that they would be recognised and stopped. She had this secret with her. She had to save the child. She pretended that the child was her own child. She had fake documents. Then at the checkpoint before the “grey zone” their car was stopped. And the sister-in-law heard as one Russian said to another: “These people should be finished off ……” And the other replied: “I think I’ve had enough for today.” But the first said: “I’m OK, I can continue.” Then the other said: “Oh, let them go. Let the others on the next checkpoint enjoy finishing them off.” The sister-in-law saw bodies lying nearby. She did not see what had happened to them but they were bodies of dead people. She saw at least four with her side vision.

 

Against all odds they managed to escape. The sister-in-law drove for three days. Her right leg got paralysed and she had to press the pedals in the car with her left leg. She had diabetes and her sugar level reached a critical point (there was no insulin in occupied Kherson). Besides her blood pressure was also at a critical level, more than 200. But she promised herself that she would make it, she would have to make it as so much depended on her and she promised to herself that the child would be alive. And she made it.

 

For a long time she could not talk about what had happened in occupied Kherson. But now she is talking about this tragedy. There are moments when she feels desperate and she thinks that it’s impossible for her to cope. But she understands that they will have to learn how to live with the tragedy as they can’t change the past and they have to go on.

 

The child did not speak for more than a year but with the help of psychologists he is making good progress. The sister-in-law believes that he will manage to start school at the age of six like a normal child.

 

Sure thing, we can’t give you the real names for reasons that are quite understandable.