In our lives without a future, we still believe in our allies

Father's faith as horrors unfold around his family

- SIMON MURPHY

A FATHER in war-torn Ukraine has told of a desperate dash to rescue his baby at the family's battered home, as the country marks two years since the Russian invasion.

When the explosion rang out, Andryi sought to save his precious nine-month-old daughter.

Racing downstairs, he found tiny Sasha and wife Vlada.

Vlada held Sasha as, barefoot on shattered glass, Andryi and his wife ran for their lives.

Some 24 months on from Moscow's full-scale invasion, this is this the reality for Ukrainians.

Death is still at their door Some 60 metres away from their home in Mykolaiv, a key port city in Ukraine's south, horror-struck.

The precise circumstances are unclear but it is thought debris could have hit from a downed Russian missile. One person was killed, others injured, buildings destroyed and a crater left in the road. It was another life lost to this conflict. For now, it feels like a war with no end in sight.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy's Ukraine has been desperately trying to repel Vladimir Putin's forces.

Though it scored success in late 2022 by recapturing Russianoccupied Kherson - about 40 miles south-east of Mykolaiv - it has had little to celebrate of late.

Last year's counter-offensive failed to meet hopes and, amid dwindling ammunition supplies, it suffered a major blow earlier this month.

Ukraine was forced to abandon Avdiivka, on the eastern front, marking Moscow's biggest gain in nine months.

And, all the while, the death toll mounts.