At the six-month mark after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the refugee crisis has changed dramatically and much of the early support has vanished
Anastasia Laurikova knew she had to get out of Kharkiv the day a 13-year-old boy was killed by a Russian missile not far from her home.
She’s worried that she left it too late and that because so many Ukrainians have streamed into Poland, the country’s support services will be stretched and the best housing and jobs will be taken. “Those people will have more opportunities because they came earlier,” she said. Had Ms. Laurikova arrived at this shelter in a vacant Tesco store at the end of February, she would have marvelled at the activity.
Six months ago, the area around a shelter in a vacant Tesco store on the outskirts of Przemysl was packed with volunteers offering hot food, clothing and other necessities. Now it is empty. For the wife of Azov Regiment commander, a life upended as she faces uncertainty about husband’s fate Iwona Warzynska, right, talks with a man at a shelter in Warsaw that houses 80 homeless men and 15 Ukrainian refugees, all women with children. The shelter is run by the Camillian Mission for Social Assistance.
WCK partners with local restaurants and it once had a huge presence in Przemysl. Its colourful tents were ubiquitous, and the charity built a kitchen that could cook 100,000 meals a day. The last tent closed this summer and the kitchen has gone dark. Most of the international charities that rushed to Przemysl in February have left and it’s hard to imagine now that this city of 60,000 was once the epicentre of the refugee crisis. At one point, almost every school and civic building in town was turned into a shelter or a collection point for donations, and the train station was so jammed that officials put in makeshift beds.
“In the first month it was really something beautiful. I met a lot of people from Poland, from different countries who came here to help,” said Laura Skibinska, 19, who has Ukrainian roots and helps refugees at the train station. “At some point, it started to not be so-popular topic. And everyone was tired of it and didn’t want to hear about it.”
She’s less optimistic now. Przemysl has largely returned to normal and some of the old attitudes have resurfaced. “The city has changed,” Ms. Grad-Mizgala said last week as she sat in a cafe not far from the square. “But not like I was dreaming.”
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Russia accuses Ukraine of poisoning some of their soldiersRussia has accused Ukraine of poisoning some of its servicemen in Ukraine\u0027s southeastern region of Zaporizhzhia in late July.
Read more »
Ukraine calls on Canada to shelve turbine exemption as German chancellor to visitUkraine has criticized Trudeau for a decision last month to agree to a request from Germany to exempt Siemens Canada from sanctions against Russia
Read more »
Russia's war at 6 months: A global economy in growing dangerSix months after Russia invaded Ukraine, the consequences are posing a devastating threat to the global economy.
Read more »
Daughter of ultra-nationalist Russian ideologue killed in suspected car bomb attack - investigatorsThe daughter of an ultra\u002Dnationalist Russian ideologue who advocates Russia absorbing Ukraine was killed in a suspected car bomb attack outside Moscow,…
Read more »
Daughter of Putin ally killed in suspected car bomb attack near Moscow | CBC NewsThe daughter of an ultra-nationalist Russian ideologue who advocates Russia absorbing Ukraine was killed in a suspected car bomb attack outside Moscow on Saturday evening, Russian state investigators said on Sunday.
Read more »