Latest news with #Margaryta
Boston Globe
6 days ago
- Health
- Boston Globe
A Ukrainian girl struggles to survive her country's war and her own
'As I tell everyone, life has stopped,' her mother said. 'The only thing that matters now is saving my child's life.' Advertisement They were able to reunite with Margaryta's father, and Kyiv offers the care she needs, despite the destruction last July of Ukraine's largest children's hospital and pediatric cancer center, in the heart of the city, by a Russian missile. But the capital does not feel like a refuge, battered by Russian drones and missiles far more often than cities in western Ukraine. Margaryta lamented that while the children being treated alongside her were able to return home between treatments, she could not. Advertisement 'She's already had six rounds of chemotherapy,' her mother said. 'Now she'll begin radiation. She's lost weight, and I have to force her to eat.' With Russia appearing to prepare for a renewed offensive this summer, the bombardment of the towns and villages along the front has grown more intense. Russian forces dropped more than 5,000 powerful guided bombs along and near the front in April, compared with 3,370 in February, according to the Ukrainian military. A primary target has been Kostiantynivka, a logistics hub for Ukrainian forces in the east that is north of the Karpovas' hometown of Novoolenivka. Once an industrial town of about 67,000 people, it now lies mostly in ruins. Russian forces have been advancing on it from the southwest, through places like Novoolenivka, setting the stage for what could be a brutal urban battle. The intensifying international diplomacy to broker a ceasefire has so far failed to halt -- or even curb -- the violence. Every Russian advance, no matter how small, uproots more families who sought to hang on to their homes as long as they could. But some 280,000 civilians, according to government estimates -- including more than 21,000 children -- remain in the portion of the Donetsk region that Ukraine still controls. Appeals for more evacuations are constant. The New York Times spent time last fall traveling with the White Angels, a special Ukrainian police unit, collecting civilians who could no longer stay. To reach Novoolenivka and rescue Margaryta and her mother, Major Vasyl Pipa, a 41-year-old police officer coordinating evacuations, had to run a gantlet along what officers had begun calling 'the road of death.' Russian bombs had obliterated entire homes, leaving not even the foundations. Advertisement Burned-out civilian cars littered the roadside -- some smoldering, others reduced to contorted, blackened metal. One still contained a charred body; the shelling had not paused long enough for someone to recover it. The drill was by then grimly familiar, as Pipa carefully fitted Margaryta with a vest and helmet, seeking to keep her calm even as artillery thundered nearby. For her mother, the war never stopped; it simply changed form. The air raid sirens in Kyiv now blend into the rhythm of hospital visits and blood tests. Margaryta, who recently turned 13, struggles to make sense of her suffering. 'She says, 'Why me? Why has God punished me?'' Karpova said, her voice breaking. 'She has moments of aggression and says, 'I'm not beautiful anymore.' I try to comfort her, but she tells me, 'You don't understand my pain.'' 'It's dangerous here too,' Karpova added. 'Sometimes I look around and don't know what to expect -- now or in an hour, when the explosions start again.' Still, there is nowhere else for them to go. Their village is wiped out. The house where Karpova spent 39 years -- where she raised her children and buried her father -- is gone. Her mother remained behind in the now-occupied territory. She managed to get in touch and is alive, staying with relatives, but the uncertainty of what may come weighs heavily. Even knowing there may be nothing left, Karpova feels drawn to the place she cannot help thinking of as home. 'I will definitely go home,' she said. 'My father is buried there -- I promised him I would visit his grave.' Advertisement This article originally appeared in
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukrainians in the U.S. worry for their safety
LANSING Mich. (WLNS) – Ukrainians in America are fearful afterbetween President Trump and President Zelenskyy. Not only are Ukrainians in the United States worried for Ukraine and the people there, but they are also worried for themselves and their safety in America. Margaryta Stevens moved to Lansing from Ukraine in 2020 and explained what many Ukrainians are going through right now. 'People are very upset; they also are fearful,' Margaryta said. She and her husband, Andrew Stevens, were outraged by the argument between President Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 'I had disgust watching it live, watching how Zelenskyy was treated,' Andrew said. In 2022, the couple watched from America as Russia invaded Ukraine. Thankfully, they were able to get Margaryta's parents, who were in Ukraine, to a safe place. Margaryta said she never would have thought the war would still be going on. 'It's been over three years now, and the country is flooded with blood; it's very bad. The best people are dying,' Margaryta said. After the recent argument, the couple worries for the future, with the U.S. pausing military aid to Ukraine. 'There's gonna be more victims, both soldiers and citizens, more destroyed buildings, cities. it will be worse and a lot faster, which is very unfortunate,' Margaryta said. Now, the CIA is reporting that the U.S. has paused intelligence sharing with Ukraine as well. 'That's something that has allowed Ukraine to stay in this fight. It has very little cost for us to share it with them. it's definitely a tactic, but it's a tactic that's going to cost lives,' Andrew said. Margaryta and Andrew said that many Ukrainians feel the same way they do and are disgusted by Trump's treatment of Zelenskyy. 6 News asked the couple what the administration could do to redeem themselves in their eyes. 'He can reconsider the way he treated Zelenskyy.' Margaryta continued, 'I doubt he would apologize, but just changing the way he talks with Ukrainians and about Ukraine.' The couple hopes the two countries can come to a mineral deal. Margaryta said she isn't just worried about Ukrainians overseas. She said that in America, Ukrainians are worried for their own safety, afraid of discrimination and of being sent back to Ukraine. 'They were running away from the war to the country where they hoped they would be heard, be safe,' Margaryta continued. 'Right now it doesn't seem like that. It doesn't seem safe anymore.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
