Eastern Front: Ukrainian City That's Under Siege From 100,000 Of 'Putin's Thugs'

As Kyiv's counteroffensive grabs headlines, Kim Sengupta meets civilians trapped in Kupiansk as a new army advances

- Kim Sengupta

“We were born here, lived here all our lives, and we’ll die here,” says Antonia Samuelska as she trudges along with the aid of a walking stick on a deserted street in Kupiansk. “We have no other home anywhere else, we’ll have to accept what comes.”

The stillness of a hot afternoon under a blazing sun is broken by the sudden roar of artillery fire, three rounds landing one after the other in quick succession, not far away, spraying dust and debris up into the air with plumes of flame and smoke. “See that? That’s what’s happening every day now. They get closer and closer, what are they trying to hit? Those are just empty houses, most people have left,” says Samuelska. “This place has been attacked since the start of the war. We had a little bit of peace after that, and then it started again.”

The attacks are continuing. On Sunday, 11 people were injured, seven severely, after Kupiansk, in northeastern Ukraine, was hit by artillery strikes. The shelling went on intermittently for several hours, setting cars and buildings on fire. The city, less than two hours tank drive from Kharkiv – the second city of Ukraine – changed hands after Vladimir Putin’s invasion. It was captured early on by the Russians and remained under occupation for six months. It was retaken last autumn in a Ukrainian assault that blitzed through the region making sweeping gains.

Now, while the international focus has been on the much-publicised Ukrainian summer counteroffensive, in which progress has been slow, Moscow has amassed a huge force – mounting its own offensive towards Kharkiv. Kupiansk, a key logistics hub, is the first objective.