UK-based aid worker describes escape from Russian missile attack in Ukraine
The charity worker - who has previously won a BBC award - is in Ukraine carrying out aid relief work including delivering sports equipment to a school and renovating a school for 550 children. He is also visiting schools, shelters and orphanages with Ukraine Relief's trustee, Marc Edwards - a British national who now lives in the US.The duo were having dinner with friends at the hotel restaurant at the time of the strike. The dining party included two US volunteers, two workers from a Ukrainian charity foundation, and a young boy and his pregnant mother."We'd just put our stuff in our rooms and went to eat with our local Ukrainian contacts and the cell phone alarm went off so we ran to the shelter," said Mr Edwards.Mr Swiacki said: "We took two steps and there was a big boom, absolute nightmare, everything just within seconds changed into a very apocalyptic news screams, alarms."Live coverage and analysis
Video sent by Mr Swiacki to the BBC showed smoke filling the restaurant with half-eaten meals and takeaway boxes on tables."There was so much stuff that we couldn't see where we were going," said Mr Swiacki.Mr Edwards confirmed that the blast "took out all the windows" and they had to climb out of the restaurant through a broken window.The duo went back into the hotel to retrieve some of their belongings and to see if anyone else was hurt.They also went outside the hotel to look for the vehicles they were using to travel around the country."Three vehicles we had with us were all destroyed – they were full of aid," said Mr Edwards.Mr Swiacki's van, which he had parked outside the hotel, was "smashed completely to pieces".
"We heard some noises we don't want to hear again. Somebody was trapped under the rubble next to our van and didn't make it. Someone was hit from shrapnel and didn't make it. I'm numb," he said. Mr Swiacki described the scene as "crazy, absolutely nightmare" and that he and the group he was with were lucky to have survived.He says the restaurant was on the ground floor and he thinks it is the only one room or at least one of the few rooms that didn't collapse.The duo are still in Kryvyi Rih and despite the shock of the explosion, Mr Swiacki says he has not been deterred him from continuing his aid work with Ukraine."I will never stop helping people after this," he said.The attack happened ahead of a European security summit on Wednesday which Zelensky is attending.Reacting to it, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said it showed "why Ukraine needs defence capabilities: to protect human lives from Russian terror".
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
2 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Sensitive documents on Trump and Putin summit found in public printer by hotel guests
The eight page planning dossier appears to have been left in a public printer by bungling officials - and contains previously undisclosed information about the summit Hotel guests in Alaska found potentially sensitive documents detailing plans for the summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, apparently left behind by bungling officials. Eight pages, apparently produced by US staff, included phone numbers of government staff members, precise meeting places and timings - as well as lunch plans for the summit. They were apparently left behind on one of the public printers at the Hotel Captain Cook, a four-star hotel 20 minutes away from the Anchorage air base where the summit took place. It comes after Trump looked tired as he returned to Washington after the summit. Donald Trump plans Zelensky and Putin meeting but there's a special condition According to NPR, the printed sequence of events was supposed to include a working lunch - with a simple menu of salad, filet mignon and creme brûlée. The menu said the "luncheon" was "in honour of his excellency Vladimir Putin". But the lunch was apparently cancelled, as was a planned presentation of a gift of an American bald eagle desk ornament, which Trump apparently planned to give Putin. Trump parroted Kremlin talking points - after Vladimir Putin ran rings around him at his half-baked Alaska summit. The US President invited Volodymyr Zelensky to what could be a fiery meeting in Washington on Monday. But there was no sign of a ceasefire from Russia - or the "severe consequences" Trump promised if Putin failed to agree one. Instead, he's leaned closer to the ruthless Russian dictator's position - abandoning calls for a ceasefire in favour of Russia and Ukraine working towards a final peace deal, one of Putin's demands. Meanwhile Putin shows no signs he was willing to give up the parts of Ukraine he's invaded. Get Donald Trump updates straight to your WhatsApp! As the world attempts to keep up with Trump's antics, the Mirror has launched its very own US Politics WhatsApp community where you'll get all the latest news from across the pond. We'll send you the latest breaking updates and exclusives all directly to your phone. Users must download or already have WhatsApp on their phones to join in. All you have to do to join is click on this link, select 'Join Chat' and you're in! We may also send you stories from other titles across the Reach group. We will also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose Exit group. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. And by literally rolling out the red carpet for him, greeting him warmly and praising him lavishly, Trump gave Putin the main thing he really wanted from the summit - to look like a world leader, rather than an international pariah. But, in a change of attitude that could provide some small hope for European leaders, Trump appeared open to US involvement in defending Ukraine from further Russian incursions.
Telegraph
26 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Mirror and Express targeted for takeover that would sack a third of journalists
The Mirror and Express newspapers are being targeted for a cost-cutting takeover that would result in more than 850 journalists losing their jobs. Documents seen by The Telegraph show that veteran newspaper executive David Montgomery is reviving a swoop on Reach that would allow the 76-year-old to wield the axe in a programme of 'radical' cost-cutting at the publisher. The £400m plan, dubbed 'Project Glass', includes a proposal to slash more than 850 journalists – more than a third of Reach's editorial workforce of 2,300 – and 100 employees in printing and production. In an unfinished draft of a presentation to investors backers, Mr Montgomery signals plans to lean more heavily on artificial intelligence instead, via 'automated content gathering'. Further cuts would be implemented in back office functions including HR and finance, while Reach's commercial headcount would be increased by 40 roles. Other plans outlined in Project Glass include 'sweating' the group's declining print newspaper titles, restructuring and ring-fencing its costly pension deficit, and embarking on an acquisition spree of other news brands. Another mooted £100m acquisition target is Yell, the digital marketing and online directory business that was formed out of the Yellow Pages in 1996. It comes less than three years after Mr Montgomery, long ago nicknamed 'Rommel' by journalists on the grounds that 'Montgomery was on our side', mounted an unsuccessful takeover bid for Reach, which owns a stable of regional titles including the Manchester Evening News and Liverpool Echo. That approach came via National World, the local newspaper group he led at the time. However, the veteran executive was ousted from National World this year after being defeated in a power struggle with Malcolm Denmark, the Irish newspaper tycoon and racehorse owner. Mr Denmark, who was National World's largest shareholder, has now taken it private. Alongside that row, Mr Montgomery mounted an unsuccessful bid for The Telegraph. He was in discussions with Todd Boehly, the chairman of Chelsea Football Club, over a complex transaction that would have used National World as a vehicle for the deal. Mr Boehly has experience as an entertainment industry publisher via his shareholding in the company behind The Hollywood Reporter and Rolling Stone. Mr Montgomery's presentation claims the backers of his Telegraph bid are ready to help bankroll a takeover of Reach with £250m of equity, alongside £150m of debt. Eldridge Industries, Mr Boehly's investment firm, was contacted for comment. Mr Montgomery may also seek to use his own cash following the £65m buyout of National World, which owns The Scotsman and The Yorkshire Post. He held a stake of 7pc, putting him in line for around £4.5m. His latest comeback bid comes at a torrid time for Reach, which has been left chasing dwindling advertising revenues amid a sluggish transition to the digital age. The company last month said it would begin trialling a paywall across its titles amid fears new Google AI tools will dent reader numbers. Reach has slashed hundreds of jobs in recent years in successive rounds of job cuts that have bruised staff morale. It has also faced criticism for its 'clickbait' stories and the deluge of adverts flooding its websites. The company's share price has declined by more than a third this year, leaving its market value at around £220m – a fraction of its £5bn peak in 2005. In the documents, Mr Montgomery criticises Reach's 'underperforming business', saying the circulation of its print newspapers – which still account for more than half of overall revenues – was dropping at a faster rate than those of rivals such as the Daily Mail. He also takes aim at Reach bosses, saying the company's 'pattern of decline has not been met with a tactical or creative response' and that acquisitions and pension top-ups worth more than £1bn over the last decade have 'all been squandered by lack of any organic plan'. Jim Mullen, the former gambling executive who oversaw more than 800 job cuts during his tenure, stepped down as chief executive of Reach earlier this year. He was replaced by Piers North, a former journalist who joined the company in 2014. Mr Montgomery claims his programme of heavy cost-cutting would save £65m per year and help increase profits by 50pc. He outlined plans to boost revenue by transforming Reach into a new digital marketing services giant – a move that he says would generate £200m in new revenues in four years. The strategy also includes a plan to expand Reach's events offering, based on the Pride of Britain brand, and generate half a million subscribers paying £5.99 a month by the end of 2027. Mr Montgomery began his career as a journalist and rose to become the editor of the News of the World before leading Mirror Group Newspapers. He established a foothold in UK regional newspapers in 2012 with the establishment of Local World, which he sold to Reach – then known as Trinity Mirror – three years later. Mr Montgomery then formed National World after snapping up titles from collapsed publisher JPI Media.
Scottish Sun
32 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Ukrainian troops cut Putin's two-pronged frontline breach in HALF in wake of Trump summit in major blow to Vlad
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) UKRAINE has managed to cut Russia's two-pronged frontline incursion in half in the latest major blow to Vladimir Putin. Moscow suddenly breached an area in the Donetsk region as a reported 110,000 troops advanced on the eastern front being swiftly contained and pushed back. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 7 Ukraine's armed forces prepare a Howitzer in Donetsk as they fight back against Russia's two-pronged frontline incursion Credit: Getty 7 Dozens of Russian military assets have been left up in flames as Ukraine continues to push back any advancing troops Credit: X/@NAFORaccoon 7 Soldiers of the 93rd Mechanized Brigade, known as 'Kholodnyi Yar' fire an anti-aircraft gun equipped with a thermal imaging camera in Donetsk region Credit: Getty 7 Putin's bloodthirsty forces reportedly advanced by at least 10km north in two prongs as part of his attempt to capture the entire Donetsk region. The terrifying development came just days before the Alaska summit with Donald Trump and was seen as a warmongering Putin trying to gain the upper hand ahead of the talks. Moscow currently controls over 70 per cent of the highly-contested Donetsk region. Capturing it entirely would allow Putin's forces to cause major disruption to supply lines on the eastern front and force Ukraine into submission. read more in Ukraine war PEACE PLOT Trump & Putin 'plan West Bank-style occupation of Ukraine' to secure truce Despite the Russians making an initial burst into Ukrainian territory these advances soon petered out. Ukrainian troops have since been able to drive the enemy away from positions near Rubizhne, Zolotyi Kolodiaz, Vesele, Vilne Shakhove, Nikanorivka, and Sukhotske, according to data from DeepState. Fierce battles erupted near the coal mining town Dobropillia with the 1st Corps of the Ukrainian National Guard announcing several hundred casualties for the Russians. The valiant corps also destroyed a Russian tank, took out two IFVs and managed to damage 37 light vehicles and three artillery pieces. President Volodymyr Zelensky also publicly praised the 1st Corps as well as several other units working in the Donetsk region in recent days. Speaking on X today, he said: "We are defending our positions along the entire front line. Donald Trump vows full peace deal not 'mere ceasefire' after Alaska summit as Zelensky to head to White House "For the second day in a row, we have achieved successes in some extremely difficult areas in the Donetsk region – in the direction of Dobropillia and Pokrovsk. "The destruction of the occupiers who tried to infiltrate deeper into our positions continues." Zelensky, who is now planning to meet Trump at the White House on Monday to discuss a peace deal to end the war, added: "I am grateful to all our warriors for their resilience." He also made a special shout out to the units of the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade 'Kholodnyi Yar' squad. Footage of the resilient forces battling on the ground and in the air in the village of Vesele shows them eliminating dozens of Putin's men. A clip shows a kamikaze drone smashing straight into two bumbling troops as they venture across a road. Another shows a missile being dropped from the sky and exploding upon impact as it hits its Russia target below. The Kholodnyi Yar unit were even responsible for capturing several soldiers and making them prisoners of war. Has the Alaska summit helped broker a peace deal? AS Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin both flew out of Alaska on Friday it appeared as though the summit was an utter failure in the eyes of Ukraine. There had been no agreements on a peace deal as Trump appeared to be hesitant to truly reveal what demands Putin was making. But a few hours after the meeting ended Trump took to social media to reveal the meeting was a success in his eyes. Trump said Russia and Ukraine both believe a full peace deal is "the best way" to end the war - rather than a short term ceasefire. Now diplomatic sources have revealed some of the initial details of the potential agreement, according to news agency AFP. The US has reportedly proposed an agreement that would see Ukraine not join Nato - but instead be offered Nato-esque protections similar to Article 5. Article 5 on Nato's founding treaty agrees collective defense - meaning allies see an attack on one as an attack on all of them. Trump reportedly floated the plan with Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders during a call after his meeting with Putin. The US President is set to discuss the terms of an agreement with Zelensky on Monday when he travels to the White House. Zelensky did not directly address any potential plan but he did say on X: "We discussed positive signals from the American side regarding participation in guaranteeing security for Ukraine." 7 A Ukrainian walks through his decimated restaurant on the frontline near Dobropillia after a Russian strike at the start of the week Credit: Getty 7 A clip shows a kamikaze drone smashing straight into two bumbling Russian troops in Vesele Credit: X/@NAFORaccoon
