Kherson survived 255 days of Russian occupation. During the initial months of the war, the city’s residents gathered in mass rallies against the invasion, which made it a symbol of fierce Ukrainian resistance.
Among the protesters were the Kolesov family: Dmytro, his wife Yulia, and their two daughters. From the beginning, the couple faithfully stood on the city’s Freedom Square to demonstrate to the Russians that Kherson belongs to Ukraine, Ukrainska Pravda wrote. Here’s the story of tells of the heroic residents who defended their hometown against all odds.
Meaningful placard
Kherson was under Russian occupation from 1 March to 11 November 2022.
Since the first day of the occupation, invaders terrorized the city with relentless shelling. And even today, they continue to hit Kherson with rockets and missiles in revenge for their retreat.
“The first minutes after Russians entered Kherson, they started to shell everything in sight, striking buildings, including schools and residential buildings. A friend of mine went on an upstairs landing to check her meter readings, and at that very moment, a shell directly targeted her apartment, turning it to rubble. Had she not stepped out to check the meter, she would not have survived,” Dmytro Kolesov described the situation in Kherson during the first days of the occupation.