By Laura McKillip Wood
KHARKIV BESIEGED
Kharkiv has been the target of some of Russia’s fiercest attacks this week. The second-largest city in Ukraine, located about 30 miles from the Russian border, has a population of 1.4 million. It is an administrative center and the home of many industries, including a tank factory, TX3, that was destroyed by Russian missiles on Monday. A missile destroyed the main government building, and the city’s central square, many residential areas, schools, and other buildings have been damaged or destroyed. As one resident put it, “Kharkiv is hardly surviving.”
Since the war began, many people of Kharkiv have spent nights in bomb shelters, basements, and subway stations. One resident reported trying to sleep in the subway with his wife and five children. During the day they hide in the basement of their home. Hospitals have moved patients to their basements, including a perinatal center where newborns and mothers hope for an end to fighting.
These precautions proved lifesaving on Monday and Tuesday when rocket attacks targeted residential areas as well as industrial regions. These strikes killed dozens of civilians in the city, wounding many more. One Ukrainian expatriate worries constantly about her elderly mother and father. Bedridden, they are unable to move to a bomb shelter when the strikes begin. “They sit in their apartment and pray for the best,” she said.
Amid destruction, stories of hope have emerged. The Christian Church of Christian Life began in Kharkiv in the 1990s through a partnership between an established evangelical Ukrainian church and Crossroads Christian Church in Evansville, Ind. Amid the danger, members have opened the church doors to shelter roughly 100 people from the area, mostly nonbelievers. Christians are serving during this time of fear and danger.
RUSSIAN TROOPS ENTER KHERSON
On Tuesday (March 1), Russian tanks and military equipment roamed the streets of Kherson’s downtown district. Kherson’s residents and the military fought hard, but Russian troops appear to have control of the city.
One church there continues to house about 100 people, Christian minister Glen Elliott said on Facebook. The church is running out of food, but leaders have found a bakery that can supply bread; they have only bread and water to give to people. The pastor and other church members have been working nonstop, and they are tired. Money is hard to come by; ATMs give out only about $7 per transaction. Buying and selling now is done only in dollars. Former Kherson residents who emigrated to Germany are now working to bring refugees to their towns and help resettle them.
Please remember the citizens of Kherson and Kharkiv and the Christians serving them in your prayers as they persevere in these dangerous and trying times.
Valentin Siniy, president of Tavriski Christian Institute in Kherson, his wife, Luba, their children, and TCI’s staff fled to western Ukraine a few days ago. TCI shared this video post about their experiences thus far.
If you want to contribute to aid in Ukraine, consider these organizations:
• IDES (International Disaster Emergency Service) started preparing to provide aid when Russia began their buildup. Be sure to designate your gift as “Ukraine relief.”
• Mulberry International provides relief to refugees.
• Pantano Christian Church, Ukraine Fund, was started by Glen Elliott, a former missionary to Ukraine who serves with the church.
Check back with christianstandard.com for updates over the coming days.
Laura McKillip Wood, former missionary to Ukraine, lives in Papillion, Neb., and writes about missions for Christian Standard.
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