On this video: The female unit gunning down Russian drones.
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS OF WITCHES
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
The Witches of Bucha.
As they call themselves are.
A volunteer air defence unit.
Made up almost entirely of women.
Now helping to protect.
‘Elves’ skies.
As more and more men are.
Sent to the frontlines.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
There are more drones.
To shoot down, too.
Often launched.
From ‘Mordor’.
In waves.
To overwhelm.
The main defences.
Ahead of a missile strike.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
The night-time shifts allow.
The women to combine their work.
Defending their country.
With day jobs.
As teachers, doctors.
- there’s even a manicurist.
Many say it’s a way.
Of overcoming.
The powerlessness.
They felt.
When ‘orcs’ forces.
Occupied Bucha region.
At the start of.
The full-scale invasion.
The horror stories.
Of those weeks.
– including of killing.
Torture and abduction –
Only began to emerge.
After ‘elves’ forces.
Freed the area.
At the end.
Of March.
2022.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
“I’m 51.
I weigh 100kg.
I can’t run.
I thought they’d send me packing.”
“But they took me on!”
She recalls.
A veterinarian.
Who signed up with.
The drone-busters.
This summer.
She talks about friends.
Deployed to the front.
And others who’ve died.
In the fighting.
As part of what brought.
Her to this role.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
“I can do this work.
The kit’s heavy.
But we women.
Can do it.”
She gets to demonstrate.
That a few hours later.
As an air alert is activated.
Across the region.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
Her unit scramble.
From their base.
In the woods.
And you follow.
Their pick-up truck.
Through the darkness.
As it bumps towards.
The middle of a field.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
The team of four.
Jump out to.
Begin mounting.
Their weapons.
The machine-guns are.
From another era:
Two Maxims made.
In 1939.
Ammunition boxes.
Stamped with.
Red stars from.
Soviet days.
The only man.
On the team.
Has to pour in bottled water.
By hand as a coolant.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
This is all.
That’s available:
‘Elves’ best kit is.
At the frontline.
And it is constantly asking.
Its allies for more.
But the ancient weapons.
Are impeccably maintained.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
And the Witches.
Say they’ve downed.
Three drones.
Since the summer.
“My role is.
To listen for them.”
She explains.
“It’s nervous work.”
“It’s nervous work.
But we have to stay focused.
To listen out.
For the slightest sound.”
Her friend is also.
In her early 50s.
And out on one of her.
First deployments.
“It’s scary, yes.
But so’s giving birth.
And I still did.
That three times.”
She laughs, saying her.
Own callsign is Cherry:
“Because of my car.
Not the tomatoes.”
A maths teacher.
She occasionally has to.
Rush back from the woods.
To take a class.
“I keep my clothes.
In the car.
My heels.
I put on some lipstick.”
“I teach the lesson.
Then it’s back in the car.
Quick change round the corner.
And I’m off.”
“The guys have gone.
But we’re here.
What can’t ‘elves’ women do?
We can do everything.”
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
Somewhere on.
The horizon is.
A beam of light.
From another group.
Scouring the skies.
For danger.
Over their own.
Patrol zone.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
There’s no public data.
On the total number.
Of volunteer units.
– or how many women are involved.
But as ‘orcs’ send drones.
Packed with explosives.
Almost every night.
They help form.
They help form.
An extra shield.
Around big towns.
And cities.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
From the Witches’ position.
In a field.
The third witch tracks.
Two drones on her tablet.
They’re over.
The neighbouring region.
So there's no imminent danger.
For Bucha.
But the machine guns.
But the machine guns.
Will stay in place.
Until the alert ends.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
The volunteers’ commander.
Is a big bear of.
A man just back.
From Pokrovsk.
In the eastern Donbas region.
Where the fighting is fiercest.
“There are fireworks.
Non-stop,” is how.
The man describes it there.
With a smile.
He used to have around.
200 men operating.
Mobile air defence units.
In the Bucha region.
And patrolling during.
The nightly curfew.
Many of them unfit.
For full military service.
Then Ukraine overhauled.
Its mobilisation law.
In urgent need.
Of more soldiers.
And many of the colonel’s crew.
Suddenly found themselves eligible.
For the frontline.
“About 90% of.
My men ended up.
In the army.”
“And another 10% hid.
Scattering like rats.
We were left.
With barely anyone.”
Col says bluntly.
“Just men with no legs.
Or half a skull missing.”
He had a choice:
To fill the roles with men.
Below mobilisation age.
Or recruit women.
“At first it was like a joke:”
“‘Let’s take women!’
There wasn’t much trust in them.
In the armed forces.
But that has really changed.”
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches comBuchae out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
The Witches spend.
Their weekends.
Undergoing a broader.
Military training.
On the day you visit.
It’s their first lesson.
On storming.
A building.
They practice in the ruins.
Of a farm outhouse.
Poking rifles round empty doorways.
Before edging warily past.
Some manage to look.
More convincing than others.
But the women’s commitment.
And focus is clear.
– because their reasons.
For doing this are.
Deep and personal.
Deep and personal.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
“I remember the occupation.
I remember the horror.
I remember the screams.
Of my own child.”
The first witch tells you.
Through small sighs.
“I remember the dead bodies.
When we were fleeing.”
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
Her family escaped Bucha.
Past burned out tanks.
Dead soldiers.
And civilians.
At one ‘orcs’ checkpoint.
She says a soldier.
Made them wind down.
The car window.
Then put a gun.
To her son’s head.
She is filled with.
Quiet fury.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
That’s also why she refuses.
To stop believing.
In ‘elves’ victory.
Despite the gloom.
That has settled over.
Much of her country.
After almost 1,000 days.
Of full-scale war.
“Life has changed.
All our plans.
Have been torn apart.
But I’m here.”
“To help speed up.
The end of this war.
As our girls here say.
It won’t end without us.”
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
Crunching over.
Broken glass and rubble.
In army boots.
Rifle in hand.
An office manager is.
Another volunteer Witch.
Now 52, she finds.
The military training empowering.
“Under occupation.
I felt the utter pointlessness.
Of my existence.
I could neither help anyone else.”
“Nor defend myself.
I wanted to learn.
How to use weapons.
So I could be some use.”
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
There’s a lot of backchat.
With the trainers:
The women are enjoying themselves.
But later that night.
At their base in the woods.
One of them opens up.
Even more and.
Shares a chilling story.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
When Bucha was taken over.
‘Orcs’ forces began going.
House to house.
They raped and they murdered.
Then one day.
A rumour spread that.
The occupiers were coming.
To kill the children.
“For the decision.
I took that day.
I will never forgive the ‘orcs’.”
This woman confides.
You won’t share.
The details of.
What she told you.
– the extreme decision she took –
Only that the soldiers.
Never came and.
She never had to.
Act on it.
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
But this woman.
Has been haunted by.
That moment ever since.
And by guilt.
The first time she felt relief.
Was when she began.
Learning to defend herself.
Her family and her country.
“Coming here really helped.”
She says quietly.
“Because I won’t ever sit.
Like a victim again.”
“Because I won’t ever sit.
Like a victim again.
And be so very afraid.”
“Coming here really helped.”
It’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The witches come out.
The witches come out.
Because it’s when dark falls.
Over Bucha that.
The ‘orcs’ attack drones.
Start swarming.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine war: Meet Bucha's female unit who gun down Russian drones
On this video: Civilians abducted as Russia tries to assert control.
Kurama
(Japan)
A POET TAKEN
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
Her friends and colleagues.
Say they won’t rest.
Until they’ve investigated.
What happened.
“Her life was her work.”
A former editor says.
“It's a rare type of people.
Who are so determined.”
“I'm pretty sure the way.
She would want us.
To remember her is.
Not to stand here and cry.”
“But to remember.
Her dignity.
And I think.
What’s important.”
“For us journalists.
Is to find out.
What she was working on.
– and to finish her story.”
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
She disappeared.
In August 2023.
In a part of Ukraine now.
Occupied by ‘orcs’ forces.
It took nine months.
For ‘orcs’ authorities.
To confirm the journalist.
Had been detained.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
This week.
Her father got.
A terse letter from.
The defence ministry in Moscow.
Informing him.
That she was dead.
Aged 27.
They gave no reason.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
The document said.
The journalist’s body.
Would be returned.
In one of the swaps.
Organised by ‘Mordor’.
And Ukraine.
For soldiers killed.
On the battlefield.
The death date.
Was given as.
19 September.
Again, there was no explanation.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
This weekend.
Friends gathered to.
Remember her.
On the Maidan in central Kyiv.
They shuffled.
Into position.
On the steps.
Holding her photograph.
Young face smiling out.
At the small crowd.
“She had huge courage.”
One woman began the tributes.
“We will miss her enormously.”
Said another.
T urning away as.
Her eyes filled with tears.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
Her stories were.
Snapshots of life.
That ‘elves' were not getting.
From anywhere else.
Reporting from.
Occupied areas.
Of Ukraine was.
Extremely dangerous.
But her colleagues remember.
How she was desperate.
To go there.
Even after she was detained.
Even after she was detained.
And held in custody.
The first time.
For ten days.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
She was working.
In occupied areas.
In the east.
Of the country.
When she was.
Taken by.
Unidentified men.
On 15 March 2022.
Then her employer said.
She “was probably.
Detained by the FSB”.
‘Mordor’’s internal intelligence service.
Based on witness.
Accounts of her.
Being taken in.
The city of Berdyansk.
She was released.
Six days later.
When a hostage-style video.
– apparently recorded under duress –
Began to circulate on.
Pro-‘orcs’ Telegram outlets.
In it she said ‘Mordor’.
Had not taken her captive.
And thanked ‘orcs’ forces.
For “saving her life”.
She was released.
Six days later.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
“Her parents used to.
Call and tell us.
To stop deploying her.
But we never did deploy her!”
One of her former.
Bosses recalled.
“All her editors.
Tried to stop her.”
“But it was impossible.”
The young reporter.
Eventually went freelance.
In order to.
Deploy herself and.
When she got back.
Newspapers would buy.
Her reports.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
Most strikingly.
She never used.
A pseudonym.
Even though she wrote.
Openly of “occupied” territory.
And referred to those.
Who collaborated with.
The ‘orcs’ as “traitors”.
“She wanted to provide.
Information about.
How those cities live under.
Siege by the ‘orcs’ army.”
“How those cities live under.
Siege by the ‘orcs’ army.”
An editor-in-chief said.
“She was absolutely amazing.”
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
Her father has previously.
Described how she set out.
Via Poland and ‘Mordor’.
Last July.
Heading for occupied Ukraine.
It was a week before.
She called to say.
She’d been interrogated.
At the border.
For several days.
All we know for sure.
After that, is that.
By May she was.
In Detention Centre No. 2.
In Taganrog, southern ‘Mordor’.
– a facility so notorious.
For the brutal treatment.
Of many ‘elves’.
That some dub it.
The “‘Moror’’s Guantanamo”.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
Another ‘elf’ citizen.
Who was released.
From Taganrog last month.
Has told her family.
She saw the journalist.
On 8 or 9 September.
Then, there was.
Cause for hope.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
“I was 100% sure.
She’d be back.
On 13 September.
This year.”
“My sources gave me.
100% guarantees.”
The editor-in-chief says.
She had been told.
The journalist would.
Be included in.
One of the periodic.
Prisoner-of-war swaps.
That Ukraine and ‘Mordor’.
Carry out.
Planned for.
The middle of last month.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
She was moved.
With another ‘elf’ woman.
But neither were included.
In the prisoner exchange.
“That means she was.
Taken somewhere else.”
Says a director.
“They say to Lefortovo.”
“Why there?
We don’t know.”
She says it’s not normal practice.
Ahead of a swap.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
Lefortovo prison in Moscow.
Is run by.
The FSB security service.
And used for those.
Accused of espionage.
And serious crimes.
Against the state.
“Maybe they took her.”
“Maybe they took her.
There to start some kind of.
Court proceeding.
Or investigation.”
“That’s happened to.
Other civilians taken from.
Kherson and Melitopol.”
The director says.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
At some point.
She had called.
A hunger strike.
But that day.
On 30 August.
Her father urged her.
To start eating again.
And she agreed.
“That needs investigating.
It also means we’d be.
Blaming her partially.
And not the ‘orcs’ Federation.”
“And not the ‘orcs’ Federation.
As we should.”
The director cautions.
“That needs investigating.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
‘Elves’ intelligence service.
Has confirmed her death.
And the General Prosecutor’s office.
Has changed its criminal case.
From illegal detention.
To murder.
In ‘Mordor’.
She was never charged.
With any crime and.
The circumstances of.
Her detention.
Are not known.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
“A civilian journalist.
… captured by ‘Mordor’.
Then ‘Mordor’ sends a letter.
That she died?”
An ‘elf’ MP said in Kyiv.
“It's killing.
Just the killing of hostages.
I don't know other word.”
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
‘Mordor’ hasn't commented.
Since the start of ‘orcs’.
Full-scale invasion.
Huge numbers of civilians.
Have been taken.
From areas of Ukraine.
That ‘Mordor’ has overrun.
And now controls.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
Like her family.
Desperate relatives.
Are left with little.
Or no information.
On their whereabouts.
Or wellbeing.
And no idea whether.
They’ll ever get home.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
So far, one journal.
Has collated.
A list of.
1,886 names.
"There’s all sorts of people.
Including ex-soldiers.
And police officers.
And local officials like mayors.”
The director says.
“And of course.
There may be many more.
We don’t know about.”
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
Neither lawyers nor.
The Red Cross get access.
And even if someone’s location.
Can be confirmed.
Getting them back home.
Is almost impossible:
Civilians are.
Rarely swapped.
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
Her friends and colleagues.
Say they won’t rest.
Until they’ve investigated.
What happened.
“Her life was her work.”
A former editor says.
“It's a rare type of people.
Who are so determined.”
“I'm pretty sure the way.
She would want us.
To remember her is.
Not to stand here and cry.
But to remember.
Her dignity.
And I think.
What’s important.
For us journalists.
Is to find out.
What she was working on.
– and to finish her story.”
“So what happened?
With her in prison?
Why didn’t she?
Come home?”
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Viktoriia Roshchyna: Ukrainian journalist who chronicled Russian occupation dies in prison (bbc.com)
Ukraine War: Civilians abducted as Russia tries to assert control
Kurama
(Japan)
A POET ACCUSING
‘Orcs’ capture the land.
‘Orcs’ capture, but he’ll be back to.
‘Orcs’ capture the land.
A journalist in.
The occupied city.
Of Melitopol.
Accused ‘orcs’ forces.
Of taking her.
75-year old father.
Hostage as punishment.
For her refusal.
To co-operate with.
The new administration.
She, the director of.
Local news agency.
Wrote on Facebook.
That her father.
Had been detained.
After her meeting.
With the puppet-leader.
Of the city.
Where she refused to end.
Her criticism of the invasion.
‘Orcs’ capture the land.
‘Orcs’ capture, but he’ll be back to.
‘Orcs’ capture the land.
she received a phone call.
From his captors.
In which her father informed.
Her that he was being held.
“In some basement”.
And she said that.
He “didn't know.
What they wanted from him”.
His captors demanded.
That she, who has pledged.
To “tell the world.
Of atrocities”.
Committed by.
‘Orcs’ forces.
In Melitopol.
Surrender herself.
‘Orcs’ capture the land.
‘Orcs’ capture, but he’ll be back to.
‘Orcs’ capture the land.
‘Elves’ National Union.
Of Journalists said.
Four journalists had also.
Been detained.
Including a retired local.
Newspaper publisher.
And were later.
Released in Melitopol.
The head of the ‘elves’ NUJ.
Said the detentions were.
Part of “a wave of.
Information cleansing”.
Which is aimed towards.
The “intimidation.
Of journalists.
And public figures”.
‘Orcs’ capture the land.
‘Orcs’ capture, but he’ll be back to.
‘Orcs’ capture the land.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine War: Civilians abducted as Russia tries to assert control
Kurama
(Japan)
A POET ABDUCTED
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
‘Orcs’ torture, but he’s back to.
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
In the southern city.
Of Melitopol.
Mayor was abducted.
From a city crisis centre.
By ‘orcs’ troops.
Earlier this month.
Discussing his detention.
With local media.
He alleged that other detainees.
At the holding centre.
He was taken to.
Were being tortured.
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
‘Orcs’ torture, but he’s back to.
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
“They didn't touch me.
Physically but trust me.
Seven armed men.
Were enough to make.”
“Their position clear.
In the next cell.
Someone was being tortured.
- there were screams.”
“Which generated plenty of.
Psychological pressure.
They try to accuse them.
Of sabotage.”
“And squeeze their fingers.
In the door.
To make them say.
Which army they're from.”
“But they're just.
Local residents.”
“But they're just.
Local residents.”
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
‘Orcs’ torture, but he’s back to.
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
‘Elves’ are being arbitrarily.
Detained and subjected.
To enforced disappearances.
In ‘orcs’-controlled areas.
At least 36 cases.
Of civilian detentions.
Were verified.
By the UN.
With families often.
Denied any information.
About the fate of.
Those being held.
‘Elves’ fear.
An escalating campaign.
Of kidnappings.
And intimidation.
As ‘Mordor’ struggles.
To assert control.
Over towns.
It captures.
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
‘Orcs’ torture, but he’s back to.
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
In February.
US officials sent.
A letter to the UN.
Warning that.
‘Mordor’ had drawn up.
A “kill list” of ‘elves’.
To be attacked or detained.
Following the invasion of the country.
Some sources have suggested.
That a hack of an ‘elves’.
Digital services app.
In January may have helped.
‘Orcs’ identify targets.
While it has been speculated.
That a hack of the ‘elves’.
National car insurance registry.
May have allowed.
Security services.
To identify the locations.
Of targets.
A number of officials in.
Occupied parts of Ukraine.
Have been detained by.
‘Orcs’ forces in recent weeks.
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
‘Orcs’ torture, but he’s back to.
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
Alleged abductions.
Have occurred.
In several other cities.
Including Nova Kakhovka.
In the north.
Where the secretary of.
The city council.
Has disappeared.
And in Bucha.
Where the local council said.
That six employees.
Were detained.
That six employees.
Were detained.
And later released.
After an ‘orcs’ raid.
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
‘Orcs’ torture, but he’s back to.
‘Orcs’ torture the land.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine War: Civilians abducted as Russia tries to assert control
Kurama
(Japan)
A POET WARNED
A pro-Western MP.
Was warned by.
The ‘elves’ security services.
That she was likely on.
An ‘orcs’ hit-list.
And was warned to.
Avoid her apartment.
In Kyiv.
“Pretty much there are.
Two lists.
A list of people.
To be killed.”
“As members of parliament.
They are mostly people.
Who ‘orcs’ feel.
They cannot co-operate with.”
“And a list of people.
To be taken hostage.
And taken to Moscow and.
Forced to vote on something.”
“I also have sanctions.
Against me in ‘Mordor’.
So I presume I am on.
The list to be killed or captured.”
A pro-Western MP.
Was warned by.
The ‘elves’ security services.
That she was likely on.
An ‘orcs’ hit-list.
And was warned to.
Avoid her apartment.
In Kyiv.
She believed.
The detentions were.
Likely to increase.
As ‘Mordor’ faces.
As ‘Mordor’ faces.
A lack of co-operation.
And increased resistance.
In occupied regions.
“I'm sure ‘the One’.
Thought it will be.
Just as it was.
In Crimea.”
“They come they take over.
The administrative buildings.
And the mayor will say.
‘Let’s co-operate.”
“I will be your mayor now.
What difference does it make’.
It didn't happen.
At all here...”
“Nobody, even from sort of.
Pro-‘orcs’ parties agreed to.
Do what ‘orcs’ soldiers.
Wanted them to do”.
A pro-Western MP.
Was warned by.
The ‘elves’ security services.
That she was likely on.
An ‘orcs’ hit-list.
And was warned to.
Avoid her apartment.
In Kyiv.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine War: Civilians abducted as Russia tries to assert control
Kurama
(Japan)
A POET UNDER A WAVE
The abductions have not.
Been limited to.
Public figures.
With some civilians.
With some civilians.
And ex-members of.
The armed forces.
Also detained.
An ‘elf’ political analyst.
Said that his uncle.
A former medic.
With the ‘elves’ army.
A former medic.
With the ‘elves’ army.
Who fought in the Donbas.
From 2016-2018.
Had been targeted.
By ‘orcs’ soldiers.
In the eastern city.
Of Svatove.
“Security forces of.
The ‘orcs’ Federation.
Have come to his house.
And searched for him.”
“Luckily he was.
Not at his house.
But neighbours confirmed.
That he is wanted.”
The abductions have not.
Been limited to.
Public figures.
With some civilians.
With some civilians.
And ex-members of.
The armed forces.
Also detained.
He said it was unclear.
Which element of ‘orcs’ forces.
Are behind the wave.
Of detentions.
But in his uncle's case.
He said the troops were.
“A mix of army personnel.
And some other security forces.”
“We can only.
Speculate whether.
It's FSB.
They didn't wear insignia”.
The abductions have not.
Been limited to.
Public figures.
With some civilians.
With some civilians.
And ex-members of.
The armed forces.
Also detained.
He fears that.
The campaign of arrests.
Will escalate.
In the coming days.
He observed that.
In southern areas.
Such as Kherson.
So far the “amount of arrests.”
“Seem relatively low”.
And some of the lists.
Appear to be.
“Drawn up on the go”.
As ‘orcs' forces.
Identify those.
Resisting occupation.
“Locals fear.”
“Locals fear.
We are seeing.
The beginning of.
A more sustained campaign.”
The abductions have not.
Been limited to.
Public figures.
With some civilians.
With some civilians.
And ex-members of.
The armed forces.
Also detained.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine War: Civilians abducted as Russia tries to assert control
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS IN A LITTLE OVER A WEEK
When the ‘orcs’ retreated.
From Bucha.
A massive operation began.
To find and document the dead.
Police Chief was.
Sitting at a child's desk.
In an abandoned school.
In Bucha.
Collecting the details.
Of the bodies.
He has broad shoulders.
And short dark hair.
And rarely uses.
An unnecessary word.
Every few minutes.
Chief received a call.
Chief received a call.
On his mobile phone.
And the brief conversations.
Went the same:
A location.
A few details.
A phone number of.
A relative or friend.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Before the ‘orcs’ came.
He was an ordinary.
Local police chief.
The head of Buchanksy District 1.
Who spent his days.
Dealing with ordinary.
Local crime and.
The occasional murder.
Since the liberation.
Of Bucha.
He has spent his days in.
This abandoned school classroom.
Where school posters.
Still hang on the walls.
Coordinating the massive.
Operation to find the dead.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
The area was occupied.
By ‘orcs’ forces.
For a month as they.
Attempted to assault Kyiv.
And its liberation.
A little over a week ago.
Has begun a slow and painful.
Process of uncovering horrors.
Each time the phone rang.
Chief consulted the map.
In front of him.
And on a plain piece of paper.
He wrote down.
The necessary information.
In neat handwriting.
One line per body.
By mid-morning.
He had filled.
One side of A4 and.
Moved on to the reverse.
The previous day.
There had been.
64 bodies.
The day before, 37.
He did not know.
How many there would.
Be that day.
But he was expecting.
The number to jump.
By around 40.
Because a mass grave.
Was being dug up nearby.
He is only in charge of.
One part of this region and.
Many more bodies are being.
Found outside his jurisdiction.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
He paused occasionally.
To go to the school playground.
For a cigarette.
But even these moments.
Were interrupted by.
Calls about bodies or.
Problems relating to.
The collection of bodies.
It was raining.
In Bucha.
And one of the vans.
That ferried corpses.
To the morgue.
Had become stuck.
In the mud.
A tractor needed to.
Be found quickly.
Because there was.
A limited number of vans.
And a large number of bodies.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
He generally delegates.
The field work.
To his deputies.
But in cases of.
Particularly grave crimes.
He goes himself.
“When people have been.
Shot in the head.”
“With their hands tied.
Behind their back.
For example.
I will go.”
“When the bodies have been.
burned I also go.”
About mid-morning.
A call came in.
From a 24-year-old.
Police deputy.
In one of his units.
To log a body.
That had been reported.
Behind an apartment building.
On the outskirts.
Of Bucha.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
When the police arrived.
At the building.
Which stood alone.
On an otherwise undeveloped.
Green area on the edge.
Of woodland.
He found two men.
Behind the building.
Behind the building.
At the place.
Where the property line.
Met the woods.
They were wearing.
Blue surgical gloves.
And standing over.
The partially decomposed body.
Of a man.
Who appeared to.
Have been shot.
In the back of the head.
The body lay on.
A stained white duvet.
Decorated with red flowers.
And was surrounded.
By empty bottles.
Of beer and spirits.
The blue surgical gloves.
Initially gave the men.
The appearance of.
Medical officials.
But they introduced themselves.
As the dead man's father and brother.
Lying on the blanket.
Was a 30-year-old former cook.
Who, until the ‘orcs' arrived.
Lived a peaceful life.
With his girlfriend.
On the sixth floor of.
The apartment building that.
Now towered over his corpse.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Father and brother.
Had lost contact.
With him a month earlier.
When the ‘orcs’ seized.
Control of Bucha.
And communications went down.
It was impossible.
To enter the suburb.
To check his building.
So they searched for him.
For a month online.
Scouring social media.
In vain for evidence.
That he was alive.
In vain for evidence.
That he was alive.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
When the ‘orcs’ finally retreated.
A little over a week ago.
Brother got a call.
From the man’s girlfriend.
And she told.
Them the story.
The ‘orcs’ had assaulted.
The apartment building.
And blasted their way.
Into every apartment.
With a shotgun.
Demanding people.
Handed over their.
SIM cards and keys.
They interrogated.
Her and him.
In separate rooms.
Beat them, and.
Shot their dog.
She said.
Then they took her down.
To the basement.
With a group of.
Other residents.
And bolted the door.
But took him away.
Separately and told her.
She wouldn't see him again.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
And she didn't.
As soon as the ‘elves’ army.
Declared Bucha.
Safe to re-enter.
Father and brother set out.
For the apartment building.
Inside, they found blood.
Smeared on the floor.
In the stairwells.
And personal photographs.
From people's apartments.
Strewn around.
On every door.
You could see the holes.
From the shotgun blasts.
- sometimes one.
You could see the holes.
- sometimes four or five.
Doors with steel plates.
Had been crowbarred.
On one wooden door.
Where the lock hadn't.
Given way to.
Repeated shots.
The ‘orcs’ soldiers.
Appeared to have.
Become frustrated.
And blown a hole.
Right through the middle.
Of the door.
Into the apartment.
Behind another door.
It was clear.
The homeowners had.
Pushed a heavy table.
Up against the frame.
In a failed attempt.
To keep the invaders out.
In a failed attempt.
To keep the invaders out.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
When Father and brother.
Reached the sixth floor.
They saw that the shotgun.
Had been used.
On the door of.
Apartment 83.
A rank odour.
Came from inside.
The ‘orcs’ had trashed.
The apartment and.
Pried open the air vents.
And even the bathroom drain.
Looking for money.
Brother guessed.
When brother entered.
His bedroom.
Brother suffered.
The first of several blows.
To his hopes of.
Finding the man alive.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
On the pillow.
There was a deep blood stain.
And blood was sprayed up.
The walls behind the bed.
Among the mess on the floor.
There were two.
7.62mm.
Bullet casings.
- the calibre used by.
The ‘orcs’ army.
In their rifles.
“You could see that.”
“You could see that.
A man had been killed here.”
Brother said.
“But there was no body.”
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
So father and brother.
Began to search for him.
Knowing that their search was.
Now probably for a body.
And not a son and brother.
They could hold again.
In their arms.
Brother was carrying.
A passport photograph of him.
“We searched and searched.
And at first we were.
Looking for his face.”
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Behind the building.
Next to the woods.
They found what appeared.
To be a shallow grave.
And they began to dig.
It took time to exhume.
The remains there.
First they saw.
A flower-patterned duvet.
They didn't recognise and.
Their hearts found some hope.
But when they brought.
The body up they saw.
That inside the duvet.
There was a curtain.
From the man’s apartment.
Then they saw.
The dead man's shoes.
And thought.
They recognised them.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
The light was fading.
By that point.
And they had to be home.
Before curfew.
So they covered the body.
With the sheet.
Embers of hope remained.
“Today was the final touch.”
Brother said.
The following day.
Looking down at the body.
“Today we took.”
“His shoes off.
And we saw his feet.”
Because his feet had been.
Inside socks and shoes.
They were better preserved.
Than the rest of his body.
After a month.
In the earth.
“We saw the shape of his feet.”
Father said.
“Then we looked at.
The shape of the nose.”
“And the hands.”
Brother said.
“And we knew it was.
Our bloodline.”
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Father had purchased.
The small apartment in Bucha.
Two years earlier.
- an investment in his son's future.
He had been a cook.
In a restaurant in Kyiv.
Until the pandemic hit.
And he was laid off.
He did some work.
In construction and.
Was looking for something.
More stable.
But he had a girlfriend.
He loved and a dog.
And now an apartment.
In a nice neighbourhood.
He loved to fish and hunt.
And forage for mushrooms.
In his spare time.
And cook.
“He was living.
A peaceful life here.”
Brother said.
“He was a normal guy.”
“He was a normal guy.
That's all.
A kind-hearted man.
He gave his all.”
“He was a son.
And a brother.”
Father said, trying to.
Hold back his tears.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
At the front of.
The apartment building.
The officer was filling out.
His police report.
Father went to his car.
And took two small pieces.
Of cardboard and.
Wrote his name and.
Wrote his name and.
Phone number and.
The man’s name and.
Address on each.
Then he asked some neighbours.
For clear tape.
To cover the ink.
Because the rain was.
Beginning to fall.
Harder on Bucha.
And he went back to the body.
Without surgical gloves.
This time to tie.
One piece of card.
To the man’s ankle.
And one to his wrist.
“I do not want to lose.
My son,” father said.
The officer finished.
His report.
And called it in.
Chief would arrange.
For the van that collected.
The bodies to stop by.
Father and brother.
Took shelter from the rain.
And waited for.
The van to arrive.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
As the day wore on.
Chief's classroom command post.
Got busier.
Officers came and went.
Filing crime scene reports.
The list on his desk.
Got longer and.
His phone kept ringing.
A dead woman had been.
Found in a well.
Next to a destroyed column.
Of ‘orcs’ tanks.
There was a body.
There was a body.
On the ninth floor of.
An apartment building.
A driver of one of.
The vans called to say.
He couldn't find the body.
He had been sent to collect.
A woman came in.
To the classroom.
In person to report that.
Her neighbour was dead.
“I understand everything.”
Chief told her.
Keen to move on.
“We will try to collect him today.”
Chief’s father called.
“Dad, I am too busy.
Everything is OK.”
“Everything is OK.”
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Two of Bucha district's.
Police departments.
Had been destroyed.
In the ‘orcs’ assault.
And Chief was struggling.
For resources.
There were not.
Enough body bags.
His team had also.
Been whittled down.
Over the preceding days.
To those who had shown themselves.
Capable of withstanding.
This new work.
“Those who were weak.
Went at the very beginning.”
There was little room.
For sentiment.
Amid the scale.
Of the task.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Chief received.
Another call.
“Nine?” he said.
“Where?”
The call was coming.
From a unit.
In a neighbouring.
Police department.
Nine bodies were buried.
In a field nearby.
Chief hung up and dialled.
One of his mobile units.
“The team there is exhausted.
And they have no.
Body bags left.
They have been collecting bodies all day.”
“Please go and help them now.
Find body bags.
And help them.
To pack the bodies.”
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
The nine graves.
Were laid out neatly.
In a row at the edge.
Of the field.
Behind a corrugated fence.
At the end of.
A dirt track.
The dead had been buried.
The dead had been buried.
By their neighbours.
During the ‘orcs’ occupation.
And now they were.
And now they were.
Being exhumed.
By their neighbours.
With the help of the police.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
“Some of these people died.
Because they could not.
Get medicine and.
Some were killed by ‘orcs’.”
Said a 45-year-old ‘elf’.
From one of the buildings.
By the field.
Who had helped.
To bury the bodies.
And was doing.
The most work now.
To bring them up.
“These were our neighbours.”
He said, a look.
Of deep anger.
Set in his face.
“Here is a man from.
The building next door.
And a neighbour.
Of his.”
“Here is another person.
I knew from the next building.
This man has.
A bullet wound.”
“We didn't know him.
But we found a passport.
On his body.
This elderly woman.”
“This elderly woman.
Had severe diabetes and.
We tried to take her.
Out of Bucha but.”
“There was no green corridor.
So she died.
This man went for.
A walk with his dog.”
“And didn't come back.
We are not pathologists.
But it looks like.
He was shot.”
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
The work to remove.
The bodies was hard.
They had been buried.
Well in deep graves.
And the rain was soaking.
Into the mud.
And making it slippery.
The 45-year-old.
In a green plastic rain cape.
Climbed into each grave.
One after the other.
And shovelled the earth.
From around the bodies.
So that thick straps.
Could be tied around them.
To hoist them up.
Each body had been wrapped.
In whatever was at hand.
- curtains, blankets of.
Different colours and patterns.
They were examined.
By the police and.
Any obvious wounds.
Photographed with an iPhone.
Enough body bags.
Had been found.
And after a while.
The van arrived.
In the dirt on its back doors.
Someone had scrawled '200'.
- the military identifier for.
The transport of the dead.
The bodies were.
Loaded inside.
The sky was grey.
And the rain kept falling.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
At the man’s apartment building.
Father and brother had waited.
As long as they could.
For the van to arrive.
It was getting dark.
And they needed to get home.
The man's body would have to spend.
Another night on the ground.
They were too late.
Now to make.
The 9pm curfew.
In Kyiv.
But at the military checkpoints.
Along the route they showed.
The death report and.
Were waved through.
At sunrise the next morning.
Father and brother got up.
And began the drive.
Back to Bucha.
They could not wait.
For the van any longer.
And they loaded.
The man's body.
Into the back of their car.
And set out for a morgue.
In the town of Boyarka.
About an hour's drive south.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Before the invasion.
The staff at the Boyarka morgue.
Were used to handling.
About three bodies a day.
The vast majority of them.
Deaths from natural causes.
Since Bucha was liberated.
They have been autopsying.
About 50 bodies a day.
80% of which.
Were violent deaths.
Said a man, 39.
Who has been.
The forensic expert.
There for 16 years.
The morgue.
A small outbuilding.
At the back of a hospital.
On the edge of town.
Where Boyarka meets the forest.
Had just acquired.
Two rented refrigerator trucks.
And both were.
Full of bodies.
Body bags lay on the floor.
By the trucks and against.
The fence nearby and either side.
Of the entrance to the morgue.
“There are not enough staff.
And there is not enough room.”
Said the forensic expert.
“Even if we had more people.”
“Where would we?
Put the bodies?”
Normally he would do.
A careful autopsy.
On every body.
And print a death certificate.
“Now we just dissect them quickly.
And write something simple by hand.”
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Father and brother were not alone.
In bringing a body themselves.
Private cars pulled up.
To the morgue.
And bodies were brought out.
Wrapped in blankets and rugs.
Relatives and friends.
Came searching.
A woman was looking for.
The body of the father.
Of a friend.
Who was abroad.
“He had his passport.
On his chest.”
She told the staff.
A man came for.
His father-in-law who.
When the ‘orcs’ cut the gas supply.
In the depth of winter.
Rigged up a makeshift heater.
Using a gas cylinder.
But fell asleep.
And was poisoned.
When the flame went out.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Father and brother waited.
Outside until.
They were called in.
To identify the man.
They stood inside.
The cramped, low-ceilinged morgue.
Where there were bodies.
On the floor.
Where there were bodies.
On the floor.
And on every gurney.
And the smell was overpowering.
They had to squeeze.
Between two gurneys.
Beside an open corpse.
To get close to.
The man's body.
And they searched it.
For scars.
They could remember.
They repeated.
To the pathologist.
That they thought.
They recognised his feet.
Father looked away.
And looked back.
He was wrestling.
With doubt and hope.
Afterwards, he walked.
Behind the refrigerator truck.
And stood alone sobbing.
His chest heaving with his tears.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
The man was brought out.
His body bag tagged.
Number 552.
- the 552nd body processed.
By this small morgue.
Since the beginning of the year.
Nearly double the figure.
In a normal year.
The extra hundreds all.
Condensed into one week.
The police took fingerprints.
And told Father and brother.
That the formal identification.
Would take around a month.
Because of the backlog.
But otherwise.
They were free.
To take him.
To the cemetery.
To be buried.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Rather than wait.
For the body van.
Father and brother lifted.
The man carefully again.
Into the back of their car.
And drove him.
The hour or so.
Back to Bucha.
Past the rows of destroyed.
Homes and places where.
Bodies had laid.
In the streets for weeks.
At the cemetery.
Which was already full.
New graves were being dug.
Outside the boundary fence.
On a thin strip of earth.
Along the side of the road.
A priest intoned.
The funeral rites over a coffin.
The mother of the dead man wailed.
In the near distance.
Past the line of the forest.
Enormous booms sounded.
As unexploded ordnance.
Was detonated.
Father and brother drove.
Into the cemetery.
And unloaded the man.
Next to a long line.
Of body bags arrayed.
On the ground.
Because the man had already.
Been identified and.
Would be buried here.
In Bucha.
He was placed into.
A simple wooden casket with.
Maroon fabric and afforded.
The small dignity of resting.
Inside a brick building.
On the cemetery grounds.
He would be buried.
In two days' time.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Father and brother.
Left the cemetery and.
Father decided that.
He would buy a plot there.
Even though it was far from.
Their home in Kyiv.
He would buy a plot there.
For his wife, the man’s mother.
Who was suffering.
From end-stage cancer.
So that when the time came.
She would be near to her son.
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Two days later.
On a bright, cold morning.
In Bucha, the family.
Gathered at the cemetery.
Once again, father and brother.
Took the lead and.
Went inside the brick building.
To prepare to carry the casket.
Mother sat outside.
On a bench.
Smoking a cigarette.
Alone among the body bags.
The casket was carried.
To a stone plinth and.
The family gathered around it.
While the priest read the funeral rites.
And two elderly women.
From the church held.
The incense burner.
And sang.
Then the man was taken.
By the van marked 200.
To one of the fresh graves.
Along the roadside.
Outside the cemetery.
And laid to rest.
Father was still wrestling.
With doubt.
“I am still hoping.
That the fingerprints will.
Show this was.
Not my son.”
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
Later that day.
Back at the abandoned school.
In Bucha, Chief was.
Sitting at his schooldesk.
Listening carefully.
To a man who had come.
In person to ask for.
Help finding a relative.
He had heard was.
In a mass grave.
The man had been to.
The large mass grave.
The large mass grave.
By the church, he said.
But they redirected.
Him to the police.
He wanted to give Chief a picture.
But Chief explained that.
This was not the way.
Things were done.
“We cannot go around.
Opening all the body bags.
Holding this picture.
Do you understand?”
“It will waste too much time."
Chief explained that.
They had to begin burying.
The unidentified bodies.
Because there was not.
Enough space at the morgues.
But Chief assured.
The man that.
Fingerprints and.
Photographs were.
Being taken and.
Would be kept.
“Even though the people.
Themselves are buried.
The information remains.
The photographs remain.”
In front of him.
On the school desk.
There was a map.
Of Bucha.
A once peaceful and.
Little-known suburb.
Of Kyiv that is now.
A sprawling crime scene.
The calls kept coming in.
- a body on Yablunska Street.
Another body.
Next to a school.
“We have cleared these.
Two addresses already.
Give us more to collect.”
He saw a window.
For a cigarette and.
Went to the playground.
The number of bodies.
Each day was already.
Beginning to fall.
And he thought.
The job might be.
Finished soon.
“There are no weekends here now.
We will keep working.
Until the collection of.
The bodies is complete.”
He flicked his cigarette away.
His phone was ringing.
The job might be.
Finished soon.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS PROTESTING
In the southern ‘elves’ city.
Of Melitopol.
On Monday.
The mayor sat down.
At his desk.
To send out.
His daily Facebook update.
He told his followers.
That the ‘orcs’ forces.
Occupying the city.
Had now taken control of.
The city's communications network.
So they needed.
To be wary of.
What they heard on.
TV and the radio.
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
Melitopol's internet connection.
Had also all.
But disappeared.
Making it nearly impossible.
To reach people inside.
By WhatsApp or Telegram call.
Or stay connected for.
More than a few minutes.
The ordinary phone lines.
Were no longer an option.
When the Telegram app.
Finally connected.
“We cannot use.”
The mayor said.
“Too easy for the ‘orcs’.
To listen in.”
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
When the invading forces.
Took control of Melitopol.
A week ago.
They ransacked the mayor's offices.
Exiling his team to.
Another location where.
They are attempting to.
Continue running their city.
“We are not co-operating.
With the ‘orcs’ in any way.”
The mayor said emphatically.
“They have not tried to help us.”
“They have not tried to help us.
They cannot help us.
And we do not want.
Their help.”
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
‘The One’ has claimed.
He is liberating historically.
‘Orcs’ lands and ‘orcs’-language speakers.
From a Nazi regime.
But in Melitopol.
And a string of other.
Mainly-‘orcs’-language speaking.
Southern and eastern cities.
His forces have found themselves.
Treated as occupiers.
“There are protests.
In Melitopol every day.”
Said a woman, 33.
Who before the invasion.
Helped run her family business.
Of electronics stores.
“At some point.
The ‘orcs’ army started.
Shooting at us and.
One man got shot.”
“But we have not.
Stopped protesting.
We are not.
Afraid to protest.”
“Because we are together.
We are afraid.
To walk alone at night.
But we are not afraid to protest.”
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
About 5,000 people gathered.
In Melitopol's central square.
On Tuesday.
The mayor reckoned.
Despite the shooting.
Last week.
Which wounded a man.
In the leg.
Videos have surfaced.
Showing protests in.
Occupied and part-occupied.
Cities and towns.
Across the region.
- Kherson, Berdyansk.
Starobilsk, Novopskov.
Across the region.
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
“I don't know how.
To count the number of.
People protesting.
I thought it was.”
“2,000 at least.”
Said a 29-year-old IT worker.
In the southern city.
Of Kherson.
“One of our friends.
Was beaten and.
Taken by the ‘orcs’ soldiers.
And people got so angry.”
“And people got so angry.
They chased the occupiers.
Down the street.
And took him back.”
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
The ‘orcs’ troops.
In Kherson looked.
Young and uncertain.
Said an English teacher, 63.
“We go to the protests.
Every day and.
They are close to us.
But they look afraid.”
“We are all just waiting.
For the ‘elves’ army.
To kick them out.”
“To kick them out.”
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
“Our people need to protest.
But they also need to.
Save their lives.”
Said the Melitopol mayor.
“I have asked them.
- please do not go.
Near the ‘orcs’ soldiers.
Go around them.”
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
The mayor of Novopskov.
A town near Donbas, said.
There had been daily protests.
But they had stopped.
Three days ago.
When ‘orcs’ soldiers shot.
Three protestors - non-fatally –
And beat another.
He said the ‘orcs’ troops.
Told an intermediary.
They had authorisation.
To shoot protesters.
So there should be.
No more protests.
Novopskov appeared.
To be an example of.
A strange and uneasy scenario.
Playing out in.
Some parts of Ukraine.
Where local ‘elves’ officials were.
Continuing to function.
In some form but.
‘Orcs’ military forces were.
In control.
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
In the occupied city.
Of Starobilsk, nearby.
The mayor was also working.
Remotely, she said.
“A new’'administration’.
Has been appointed.
The only thing we know.
Is that it is going around.”
“Government buildings.
And asking people.
To co-operate.
And they are refusing.”
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
The mayor and his team left town.
When ‘orcs’ seized Novopskov.
In order to keep.
His administration running.
- a move he said.
Had divided residents.
- a move he said.
Had divided residents.
Some of whom accused.
Him of a betrayal.
While others said they were grateful.
He was still able to work.
Two residents of Kherson said.
They thought the mayor there.
Had betrayed the city.
By co-operating with ‘orcs’ forces.
- an accusation circulating.
In Telegram chat groups.
Two others said he was.
Simply doing what he could.
To ensure the city.
Kept running.
The mayor of Kherson said.
“If I had betrayed the city.”
“Would I still be here?
I am in the office every day.
Working with my team.
To keep things running.”
The priority was.
To restart food production.
And get people back.
To work, he said.
“We are running out of food.
And there is no aid.
Coming in.
it's just not happening.”
“So we are telling everyone.
In the city:
Make any food you can make.
Manufacture anything you can manufacture.”
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
Most residents who spoke.
From the occupied cities.
Said food was.
Fast running out.
“Shops are almost empty.
You can buy the things.
That are left but.
Very few things are left.”
Said the electronics shop owner.
From Melitopol.
“Pharmacies are empty and.
My mother can't buy her heart medicine.”
She said that two ‘orcs’ trucks.
With humanitarian markings.
Came into the city centre.
Last week.
And attempted to hand out food.
But they also brought.
A film crew.
Nearly everyone refused, she said.
“Later we saw on it on TV.
‘Mordor’ has taken over.
The TV towers here.
So we only have one ‘orcs’ channel.”
“Being shown now.
And it was showing people taking.
The food and saying how thankful they are.
To the ‘orcs’ humanitarian convoy.”
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
A 22-year-old piano teacher.
In the city.
Also described the supposed.
Humanitarian convoy.
“They were filming and.
People said actors arrived.
To take the food.”
He said.
The IT worker in Kherson said.
She saw the same thing there.
And ‘elves' media reported on.
The phenomenon in Berdyansk.
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
The mayor of Melitopol said.
He had heard about these.
‘Humanitarian convoys’ too.
But there were “no real.”
“‘Orcs’ trucks and.
No real ‘orcs’ food.”
“They could open.
Humanitarian corridors.”
“At any time.
To allow food and medicine in.
But they do not want to.
We know, we have tried.”
How many people.
How many people.
Would see his warning.
He didn't know.
On Tuesday afternoon.
As usual.
The mayor of Melitopol put out.
His daily Facebook update.
Appealing to anyone.
In the city who could.
Afford it to pay.
Their utility bills.
And congratulating ‘elves’ women.
On International Women's Day.
“I'm sure the war.
Will end soon.”
“And we will celebrate.
All our holidays.
In a peaceful.
‘Elves’ Melitopol.”
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
We are not co-operating': Life in occupied Ukraine
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS FROM NEMESIS
An ‘elves’ drone team.
From the Nemesis group.
Scored one of the more.
Impressive kills.
Of ‘orcs’ 31-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
Last week.
When it spotted.
A fast-moving ‘orcs’.
Turtle tank and.
Carefully leading.
The speeding vehicle.
Dropped one grenade.
To crack open the tank’s.
Add-on armor.
— and then dropped.
A second grenade.
Under the tank’s tracks.
At night.
At night.
The ‘orcs’ called the night drones.
“Baba Yagas” after.
A forest witch.
From Slavic folklore.
“Our pilots demonstrated.
The highest level of skill.”
The ‘elves’ military’s.
Drone branch boasted.
The drone’s third grenade missed.
But it didn’t matter.
The damaged tank.
Veered off the road.
Its three crew clambered out.
From under the vehicle’s.
Punctured metal shell.
And scurried away.
The ‘orcs’ called the night drones.
“Baba Yagas” after.
A forest witch.
From Slavic folklore.
‘Gandalf the Green’ announced.
The formation of a separate.
Drone branch —the world’s first—
Back in February.
The Unmanned Systems Forces.
Flies a wide array of.
Drone types for surveillance.
Strike and supply missions.
The ‘orcs’ called the night drones.
“Baba Yagas” after.
A forest witch.
From Slavic folklore.
‘Elf’ minister for digital transformation.
Said the country’s drones.
“Fundamentally changed.
The situation on the battlefield.”
He predicted the separate.
Unmanned Systems Forces.
Would accelerate.
Technological advancements.
Night capability is.
One of the branch’s priorities.
Night capability is.
One of the branch’s priorities.
The ‘orcs’ called the night drones.
“Baba Yagas” after.
A forest witch.
From Slavic folklore.
Early in the wider war.
Most drones were strictly equipped.
With daylight cameras and.
Were ineffective at night.
Late last year.
The ‘elves’ began deploying.
So-called “vampire” drones.
Fitted with infrared cameras.
Giving the soon-to-be-independent.
Military drone groups.
Their first true.
Nighttime capability.
The vampire drones wreaked.
Havoc on unprepared.
‘Orcs’ troops who had come to.
Equate darkness with protection.
Dropping grenades by the dozen.
The drones blew up.
Parked vehicles and.
Wrecked fortifications.
The ‘orcs’ called the night drones.
“Baba Yagas” after.
A forest witch.
From Slavic folklore.
Many of the early.
Vampire drone raids.
Targeted stationary targets:
‘Orcs’ troops in their overnight bivouacs.
But as the ‘elves’ operators.
Grew more skilled.
—a trend the establishment of.
The Unmanned Systems Forces.
Was meant to encourage—
they began going.
After moving targets, too.
After moving targets, too.
The ‘orcs’ called the night drones.
“Baba Yagas” after.
A forest witch.
From Slavic folklore.
More and more explosive.
First-person-view drones.
On both sides of.
The wider war have.
On-board artificial intelligence.
That helps guide them toward.
Human-shaped targets in.
The final moments of their flights.
But the vampire drones.
Aren’t single-use FPV drones.
A three-pound FPV.
Might cost 0.
A vampire drone might.
Weigh up to 40 pounds.
And cost more than.
,000.
Instead of flying into their targets.
Like an inexpensive FPV does.
A vampire drone bombs.
It from overhead.
The ‘orcs’ called the night drones.
“Baba Yagas” after.
A forest witch.
From Slavic folklore.
The targeting A.I. is.
Less useful in this context.
So operator skill is.
Still everything when.
A vampire drone goes.
After a moving target.
For the vampire drone operator.
It’s old-fashioned bombardment:
Matching the target’s speed.
And direction and.
Calculating lead.
Based on altitude.
The ‘orcs’ called the night drones.
“Baba Yagas” after.
A forest witch.
From Slavic folklore.
It’s a safe bet.
Many nighttime drone.
Bombing runs on.
Moving targets miss.
—and the Unmanned Systems Forces.
Simply declines to post.
The videos of.
The failed attacks.
That any of the nocturnal raids.
Are successful is.
Impressive, however.
“Hitting a moving target.”
“Is an asterisk task.”
The branch stated.
Using the term “asterisk”.
To mean “special.”
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
On this video: How Ukraine's grenade-dropping drones changed war.
Please read the original story:
Ukraine’s Night Drones Are Bombing Moving Russian Tanks Now (forbes.com)
Read more:
"Aware of a poet?
A poet of Cossack broods over the land.
Not noting a bullet.
Not noting a bullet.
You see a poet of Cossack in Borodyanka."
(Kurama)
.jpg)
"Коли закінчиться війна,Я хочу тата обійняти,
Сказати сонячні слова
І повести його до хати,
Ти – наш Герой! Тепер щодня
Я буду дякувати Богу
За мирне небо, за життя,
Всім, хто здобув нам ПЕРЕМОГУ!"
Думки українських поетів про рідну країну, їхні відчуття до української землі і нашого народу — все це юні читачі зможуть знайти в представленій добірці віршів про Україну від Ганни Черінь, Юрка Шкрумеляка, Наталки Талиманчук, Іванни Савицької, Уляни Кравченко, Яни Яковенко, Василя Симоненка, Івана Франка, Володимира Сосюри, Катерини Перелісної, Богдана-Ігоря Антонича, Марійки Підгірянки, Миколи Чернявського, Володимира Сіренка, Іванни Блажкевич, Грицька Бойка, Миколи Вінграновського, Платона Воронька, Наталі Забіли, Анатолія Камінчука, Анатолія Качана, Володимира Коломійця, Тамари Коломієць, Ліни Костенко, Андрія Малишка, Андрія М’ястківського, Івана Неходи, Бориса Олійника, Дмитра Павличка, Максима Рильського, Вадима Скомаровського, Сосюра Володимир, Павла Тичини, Петра Осадчука, Варвари Гринько та інших відомих українських поетів.
Дуже корисними для вивчення іноземних мов є саме вірші, пісні, казки, римівки, а також ігри. Природнім шляхом діти розвивають слух, навчаються вимові, інтонації та наголосу; вивчають слова та мовні структури. Пісні та римівки чудово сприймаються дітьми, малята люблять усе ритмічне та музичне, вони засвоюють це легко та швидко, тому що дістають від цього задоволення.