Chernihiv, Ukraine – Two years after Russia’s armed forces captured the small village of Yahidne in Ukraine’s Chernihiv Oblast, Ivan still feels lucky to have survived.
Along with 366 locals, including women, children, and the elderly, he was detained by Russian soldiers in a school basement for 26 days in March 2022.
The villagers never thought of Yahidne as a strategic location for Russian forces. They did not expect to be targeted.
When they began hearing the sound of explosions in surrounding areas, they feared the worst.
On March 3, the peace of this small community was shattered when Russian military vehicles entered the village in a long column.
Ivan, 63, hurried to his home, hoping to seek shelter.
However, he and his family, faced with the threat of death, quickly surrendered to Russian soldiers and joined other locals forced into a school basement.
“I remember the day they broke into the basement of our house where I was hiding with my family. They [Russian soldiers] threatened us with guns and ordered us to take off our clothes and hand over our phones,” said Ivan.
The story of Yahidne did not make the headlines back in March 2022 and that is probably because there was virtually no one to tell it.
Since their liberation, villagers have talked to investigators and journalists to be remembered and chosen to keep the basement intact to serve as a war memorial.
Remnants of war, like explosives and shells, can also be seen scattered across the village.
“We thought we were doomed,” said Ivan, who often refers to the basement as a concentration camp.
Russian troops captured Yahidne seven days after they launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. They withdrew at the end of March.