Information for Decision Making

[DaffyVina]

Ukraine war: Russia to open war enlisting hub on Georgia border
By Yaroslav Lukov
BBC News
Published 2 hours ago

Media caption,
Watch: Drone video shows scale of people leaving Russia via Georgian border

Russia is to open an army enlisting centre on the border with Georgia, where massive queues have formed as Russian men try to flee the country to avoid being sent to fight in Ukraine.

Officers at the Verkhniy Lars crossing will be tasked with serving summons to "citizens of the mobilisation age", the authorities say.

Recent satellite images have shown queues going for miles from Russia.

All those crossing into Georgia look exhausted, a BBC correspondent says.

They are hungry and sleep deprived - but relieved to have reached safety, Rayhan Demytrie says. People have been coming in groups of walkers, dragging their suitcases behind them. Others have arrived in car or on bikes.

One man, Ilya, showed our correspondent a polaroid of his baby daughter Arisha. He said he wanted to see her grow up, and not die in the senseless war in Ukraine.

Dima and Zhenya, two brothers in their early 20s, said they had travelled for days from Bashkiria - Russia's republic about 1,500km (932 miles) east of the capital Moscow.

Dima asked for a hotspot to call his mother. On the other end of the line there was a sigh of relief.

Young man, a woman with a baby and children walk to cross the border from Russia into Georgia. Photo: 27 September 2022
IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES
Image caption,
Military-age men - as well as women and young children - have been desperately trying to flee Russia

Another young man from Moscow said the reason he was fleeing was because of the man in the Kremlin, President Vladimir Putin.

Everyone says the same thing: they disagree with the war - but the extent of repression in Russia makes them powerless, our correspondent says.

The interior ministry of Russia's North Ossetia republic, where the Verkhniy Lars crossing is, said 60 of its personnel had already been deployed there, describing the situation as "extremely tense".

It added that the army enlisting centre would be opened "in the nearest future".

Long queues have also been reported on Russia's border crossings with Mongolia and Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev vowed on Tuesday to protect the safety and welfare of Russians fleeing a "hopeless situation".

The Russian defence ministry on Tuesday said it would not seek the extradition of Russian nationals travelling abroad to avoid being drafted into the army.

President Putin announced what he described as a partial mobilisation on 21 September, with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu later saying 300,000 reservists would be called up.

But reports in opposition Russian media suggested that up to one million people could be called up, pointing out that the actual number of those who would be enlisted was classified.

A number of military experts in the West and Ukraine say Mr Putin's decision to call up reservists shows that Russian troops are failing badly on the battlefield in Ukraine - more than seven months after Moscow launched its invasion.

In an unusual move on Monday, the Kremlin admitted that mistakes were being made in its mobilisation drive., amid growing public opposition across the vast country.

"There are cases when the decree is violated," Mr Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that "all the errors will be corrected".

On Tuesday, Sergei Baranovsky, the top official responsible for war mobilisation efforts in the extreme north-eastern Magadan region, was sacked.

Multiple reports - backed by footage on social media - say people with no military experience, or who are too old or disabled, are being called up.

Since the mobilisation announcement, more than 2,000 people have been detained at protests across Russia.

"We are deeply disturbed by the large number of people who have reportedly been arrested," UN rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said on Tuesday.

In one of the most shocking and widely-discussed incidents, a man shot and critically injured an army recruitment officer in the Siberian city of Ust-llimsk on Monday.

[DaffyVina]

Ukraine war: Disputed referendums close in Russian-held regions
By Patrick Jackson
BBC News
Published 1 hour ago

Four disputed referendums have ended in Russian-held parts of Ukraine - votes which Moscow may use as grounds to annex more territory.

The votes were denounced as a sham by Ukraine's government and its Western allies, who regard them as stage-managed by the Kremlin.

Votes were held in the breakaway eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.

Ballots in Russian-occupied parts of the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia were also organised.

In the absence of international recognition, the process was not monitored independently for ballot-rigging.

Refugees scattered across Russia were also able to vote at dozens of polling stations, including in annexed Crimea. Early results from voting there indicated huge majorities in favour of joining Russia.

Up to four million people were asked to vote in the war-torn regions, which make up about 15% of Ukraine's territory.

There is speculation that Russian President Vladimir Putin may announce the four regions' annexation in a speech to a joint session of Russia's parliament on Friday.

In March 2014, he announced that Ukraine's Crimea Peninsula had joined Russia just a few days after a likewise unrecognised referendum was held.

If Russia annexes the four regions, it could take the war to a new and more dangerous level, with Moscow portraying any attempt by Ukraine to regain them as an attack on its sovereign territory.

The UK responded to the referendums with new sanctions targeting top Russian officials involved in enforcing the votes, while the US has warned Moscow it will impose further economic sanctions if it annexes more territory.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called on the EU to impose more sanctions on Russia in response to the votes, which he said would not change Ukraine's military plans.

"It won't be enough to limit oneself to cosmetic economic measures," he said.

"We need an extremely serious, effective response with specific things that will hit the Russian economy. The softer the reaction to the so-called referendums, the greater the motivation for Russia to escalate and annex further territories."

Mr Putin defended the referendums, saying they were designed to stop the persecution of ethnic Russians and Russian-speakers by Ukraine - a charge the Ukrainian government denies.

"Saving people in all the territories where this referendum is being held is at the top of our minds and the focus of attention of our entire society and country," the Russian leader said in televised remarks.

***

An outcome of little surprise
Analysis by James Waterhouse, BBC News Kyiv correspondent

The preliminary results of the four self-styled referendums will be of little surprise to anyone, least of all Ukraine.

The announced 97%+ votes in favour of joining Russia are a continuation of the Kremlin's narrative of trying to "liberate" Ukrainians in those areas, as well as its attempts to legitimise its presence in the country.

Ukraine and the West have discredited the process, and the BBC has heard evidence of armed soldiers collecting votes door to door, as well as claims of voting not being held at all.

Russia is expected to draft quick, new laws around the annexation of these four contested territories, and has threatened the use of more lethal weapons if they are targeted in the future.

What Kyiv has always said is that its objectives have not changed, regardless of the statements (and now results) which come from Moscow.

***

Early voting took place over four days, as election officials escorted by soldiers visited people's homes. Polling stations only opened on Tuesday.

"With my voice, I want to try to make a small contribution to stopping the war," Galina Korsakova, 63, from Donetsk told AFP news agency at a polling station in Crimea. "I really want to go home."

The unrecognised plebiscites were held as the war raged on, and at least one election official was killed, in a missile attack in the Zaporizhzhia city of Berdyansk.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, tens of thousands of combatants and civilians have been killed or injured, while whole cities and towns have been largely reduced to ruins.

More than 7.4 million Ukrainians are currently recorded as refugees, including nearly 2.7 million in Russia, UN figures show.

[DaffyVina]

Russia 'blindfolded and restrained' Japan consul

Japan has accused Russia's security services of blindfolding and restraining one of its diplomats in the eastern city of Vladivostok.

Motoki Tatsunori, its consul in the city, was freed from custody on Tuesday after being accused of espionage - and given 48 hours to leave Russia.

Moscow alleges he received secret information about its co-operation with an unnamed Asian country.

"A Japanese diplomat was detained red-handed while receiving classified information, in exchange for money, about Russia's co-operation with another country in the Asia-Pacific region," Russia's FSB security service said in a statement.

Japan denied the allegation and said the detention of its consul for political affairs violated the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and had been carried out in "an intimidating manner".

It is demanding a formal apology and has confirmed that the diplomat would leave Russia by Wednesday after being declared persona non grata.

[DaffyVina]

Ukraine war: Who is winning?
Published
7 days ago

A Ukrainian soldier makes a victory sign while on patrol of Izium
IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES

Ukrainian forces have made rapid gains in recent days and have recaptured territory in the Russian-occupied Luhansk region of eastern Ukraine.

However, Russian forces still hold about a fifth of the country.

How has the conflict changed?
Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, surrounding the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. It also launched attacks in the south, east and north of the country.

In early April, Ukrainian forces retook large areas around Kyiv, after Russia abandoned its push towards the capital.

Russia has since been focusing its military operations in the south, east and north-east of Ukraine, seizing large areas.

However, things changed dramatically at the start of September.

In a decisive offensive in the north-east, Ukraine drove back Russian forces. It claims to have regained 3,000 square kilometres (1,158 sq miles) of territory around the city of Kharkiv alone.

Its forces have also retaken territory in Luhansk, in eastern Ukraine. Since July, the region had been entirely occupied by Russia.

In total, Ukraine says it has retaken more than 8,000 sq km (3,088 sq miles) from Russian control in September - its most significant territorial gains since the war started.

Map showing Kharkiv counter offensive. Updated 13 Sept.


The cities of Izyum and Kupiansk, which Ukraine says were retaken on 10 September, were both key supply hubs for the Russian forces. As such, these represent important strategic gains.

There is also a Ukrainian counter-attack around the Kherson region in the south of the country.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) says Ukrainian troops have inflicted a "major operational defeat" on Russian forces.

Justin Bronk of the Royal United Services Institute said Russian positions in Kharkiv had suffered a "total collapse".

The Russian withdrawal was, he said, "certainly the most dramatic reverse that we've seen from the Russians since they retreated from Kyiv in April".

How has Russia responded?

Russia confirmed that its forces retreated from Izyum and Kupiansk. It said this was a strategic withdrawal to "regroup".

It has also said it will continue to target these areas with military strikes.

The Russian army appears to have abandoned large quantities of equipment and ammunition during the withdrawal.

How much territory does Russia still occupy?

Russia still holds about 20% of Ukraine, according to the ISW.

The areas are largely in the eastern Donbas region and in the south of mainland Ukraine, as well as the Crimea peninsula which Russia annexed in 2014.

Map showing the south of Ukraine. 12 Sept


The Donbas is a mainly Russian-speaking area, and after Russia seized Crimea in 2014, pro-Russian forces captured more than a third of the region. It created two so-called people's republics there.

Areas in the west of the country, including Lviv, have experienced missile attacks, but no attempt by Russian forces to take and occupy ground.

What does Russia want?

Russia refuses to recognise its invasion as a war, and says it is undertaking a "special military operation" in Ukraine.

The Kremlin said its operations would continue "until all the tasks originally set" had been achieved.

When launching the invasion in February, President Vladimir Putin said his goal was to "demilitarise Ukraine".
Putin -IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES

One objective was to ensure Ukraine didn't join the Western defensive alliance, Nato.

Russia's initial aim was to overrun Ukraine and depose its government.

However, it now appears to have limited its ambitions to securing land in Ukraine's east and south.

What does Ukraine want?
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said his main goal is to drive all Russian troops out, to "de-occupy our whole territory".

Mr Zelensky has appealed for more funding and equipment to retain the areas retaken from Russia.

Western shipments of weaponry are being used heavily by Ukrainian forces.

How many have people have died?
Both sides have suffered losses, although neither publish exact numbers.

Ukraine claims it has killed more than 50,000 Russian troops, and at the end of August said it had lost nearly 9,000 military personnel since the start of the conflict.

Russia rarely discloses its own troop fatalities. Its most recent death count was in March, when it said 1,351 Russian soldiers had died since the invasion began.

Ukraine troop funeral -IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES

In July, US officials estimated that about 15,000 Russian soldiers had died.

Civilians have also died. At the start of September the United Nations corroborated more than 5,700 deaths.
However, it said the actual number is likely to be considerably higher.

[DaffyVina]

Ukrainians told to be ready to fight for Russia
By Abdujalil Abdurasulov
BBC News, Kherson
Published 3 hours ago

Image caption, Ukrainian soldiers in the southern front line use an old Soviet self-propelled howitzer called 'Gvozdika'

Ukraine's progress in the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia has been far more limited than its successes in the north-east. Front line positions come under regular fire as both Russia and Ukraine attempt to push forward. The BBC's Abdujalil Abdurasulov gained rare access to the Ukrainian front line in Kherson region.

An old Soviet self-propelled howitzer called Gvozdika or "Carnation" is rolled out in an open field and put into position. Its barrel tilts up. "Fire!" comes the command.

The gunners hastily move away after the last shot, acting quickly.

Although the advancement of Ukrainian forces in the south is very slow, their artillery units remain busy.

Stus, commander of the gunners, explains that the Russians target his infantry and they respond in order to silence them.

Their job is very much felt at the front line. Soldiers walk across the vast field under the cover of a line of trees. They pay no attention to the sound of missiles flying above their head nor the thud of explosions. The fighters say a Russian observation post is 500m away and they might be within the range of small arms.

The Ukrainians move quickly to reach a destroyed farm building that they took back just a week ago. Now, they are digging trenches and carrying sandbags in order to fortify their new position.

Image caption,
Stus, commander of the gunners, says troops "shouldn't underestimate our enemy"

But Ukraine's advancement in the south is moving slowly.

All talk about counter-offensive here helps to deceive Russians and achieve gains in the East, laughs Vasyl, a deputy commander of the regiment.

"But we have some success here as well. We continue liberating villages with small steps but it's very difficult - every victory we have is covered with blood," he adds.

Many Ukrainians who remain behind the Russian front line, in the occupied territories, are anxiously waiting for this counter-offensive.

"We're euphoric when Ukraine hits the occupied territories," says Iryna, a resident of Melitopol in the south. "It means that Ukraine has not forgotten us. We all know that living near military infrastructure and buildings is not safe, so most civilians have moved out from those locations."

But for people in the occupied territories, the longer they wait, the harder it is to survive. Many believed that the counter-offensive would happen in August. But when that didn't happen, people started to flee towards Ukrainian controlled territories and areas further to the West.

Among them was Tatyana Kumok from Melitopol. The Israeli citizen was visiting her hometown when the Russian invasion started in February. She stayed in the city and distributed aid to residents but in September, she and her family decided to leave. One of the main reasons for leaving was Russia's promise to hold a so-called referendum.

"As soon as it's done, the Russians will introduce new bans according to their laws and try to legitimise the occupation," she says.

With the city turned into a giant military base, she says it is clear that Russian troops won't abandon the city easily.

"It was obvious the city won't be liberated this fall," she adds.

Tatyana Kumok helping distribute aid
IMAGE SOURCE,TATYANA KUMOK
Image caption,
Tatyana Kumok and her family fled Melitopol just before Russia decided to hold a so-called referendum

Even a silent resistance to Russian occupation is getting dangerous now.

In September many families were forced to send their children to Russian-administered schools even though their children would be exposed to the Kremlin's propaganda.

"If you don't send your child to school, it's a litmus test for you - it means you have pro-Ukrainian views," explains Ms Kumok. "I know parents who had to tell their seven-year-old child not to talk about things discussed at home with anyone at school. Otherwise the child could be taken away. That was really awful."

A picture taken during a visit to Berdyansk organized by the Russian military shows children at a newly opened kindergarten in Berdyansk, Zaporizhia region
IMAGE SOURCE,EPA
Image caption, Children at a newly opened nursery in Russian occupied Berdyansk of Zaporizhia region

The crackdown on people who do not support Russian rule is rising.

"There is a sharp increase of arrests since August following the successful Ukrainian air strikes," says Bohdan who is still living in Kherson. He spoke with the BBC via a messenger app and his real name is not being revealed for his safety.

Bohdan says that earlier detentions were based on a list of names that the Russian military had. But now anyone can be arrested and thrown into a basement for interrogation.

Russian soldiers recently came to the house of Hanna (not her real name) in Nova-Kakhovka, a city in Kherson region, to check who was living there.

"They didn't go inside the house but it was still scary. I don't even walk with my phone now," she said via a messenger app.

A woman casts her ballot during voting in a so-called referendum on the joining of Russian-controlled regions of Ukraine to Russia, in a hospital in Berdyansk, Zaporizhzhia region
IMAGE SOURCE,EPA
Image caption, A woman in Russian occupied Zaporizhzhia casts her ballot during voting in a so-called referendum

The self-styled referendum is bringing a new threat to the local population - mobilisation. Many men could be drafted to fight for the Russian army.

Russian soldiers are already going house to house in some villages and writing down the names of male residents, local residents say. They claim soldiers have told them to be ready for a call-up after the referendum.

Men aged 18-35 are reportedly not allowed to leave the occupied territories any more.

Iryna left on 23 September, the first day of the so-called referendum, with her husband and two children. They wanted to stay in order to look after her paralysed 92-year-old grandmother.

"But when Putin announced the call-up, and we already knew about the referendum, it was clear there would be a mass mobilization and men would be detained right on the street irrespective of their age," she says.

"We could survive without gas and electricity, we could find solutions for that. But not for this. That was our red line," says Iryna.

Image caption,
Vasyl, a deputy commander in the Ukrainian army says "every victory we have is covered with blood"

The Russian call-up will pose more challenges for the Ukrainian counter-offensive.

It will certainly escalate the war and more people will die, Ukrainian soldiers say.

"We shouldn't underestimate our enemy," says Stus, commander of the gunners. "Those new recruited Russian soldiers will have guns and grenades, so they will pose a threat, which we will have to eliminate".

As the gunners wait for new tasks with their howitzer hidden in the bushes, Russian troops hit a nearby Ukrainian village with Grad missiles. The gunners are silent as they listen to the series of explosions.

That terrifying sound was just another reminder that the success of the Ukrainian troops will depend on how quickly they can make Russian artillery and rocket launchers go silent.

[DaffyVina]

Nord Stream leaks: Sabotage to blame, says EU
By Merlyn Thomas
BBC News
Published 1 minute ago

Media caption,
Watch: Footage from the Danish Defence of what it says is a gas leak from the pipelines

The EU has said leaks in two major gas pipelines from Russia to Europe were caused by sabotage - but stopped short of directly accusing Russia.

Deliberate disruption would result in the "strongest possible response", said the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

Ukraine earlier went further, accusing Russia of a "terrorist attack".

The EU has previously accused Russia of using gas supplies, and the Nord Stream line, as a weapon against the West.

The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he thought the leaks would "not have a significant impact on Europe's energy resilience". Neither pipeline is transporting gas at the moment, although they both contain gas.

Mr Blinken did not directly accuse Russia - but said it would be in "no-one's interest" if they were caused deliberately.

The president of the European Council, Charles Michel, echoed Ms von der Leyen's message.

"Nord Stream sabotage acts appears to be an attempt to further destabilise energy supply to [the] EU," he said on Twitter.

The Danish energy minister, Dan Jorgensen, said the leaks were likely to last for at least a week, until the gas escaping from the pipes runs out. The investigation would begin after that.

The operators of Nord Stream 2 warned of a loss of pressure in the pipeline on Monday afternoon. That led to Danish authorities saying ships should avoid the area near the island of Bornholm.

Then on Tuesday, the operator of Nord Stream 1 said the undersea lines had simultaneously sustained "unprecedented" damage in one day.

The Nord Stream 1 pipeline - which consists of two parallel branches - has not transported any gas since August when Russia closed it down. It blamed the closure on maintenance - the EU said it was trying to weaponise Europe's gas supply.

Nord Stream 1 stretches 745 miles (1,200km) under the Baltic Sea from the Russian coast near St Petersburg to north-eastern Germany. Its twin pipeline, Nord Stream 2, was halted after Russian invaded Ukraine.

A Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said he was "extremely concerned" about the leaks, adding that the possibility of a deliberate attack could not be ruled out.

Seismologists reported underwater blasts before the leaks emerged. Denmark's Defence Command has released footage of the leaks which shows bubbles - the largest is 1km (0.6 miles) in diameter - at the surface of the Baltic Sea.

"There is no doubt that these were explosions," said Bjorn Lund of Sweden's National Seismology Centre.

On Tuesday, Ukraine's presidential adviser Mikhaylo Podolyak said the leak was "nothing more than a terrorist attack planned by Russia and an act of aggression towards the EU".

Map showing the route of the Nord Stream pipelines between Russia and Germany.

[DaffyVina]

From the Ukrainian MoD:

https://sprotyv.mod.gov.ua/en/2022/09/1 ... surrender/

A 24-HOUR HOTLINE HAS BEEN LAUNCHED FOR RUSSIAN SOLDIERS WHO WANT TO SURRENDER
September 19, 2022

“I want to live” is a hotline for servicemen of the Russian Federation who intend to surrender.

This is reported by the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War. (https://t.me/Koord_shtab/131)

“As part of the work of the Coordination Headquarters, a Unified Center and a 24-hour hotline for receiving appeals from Russian military personnel and their families have been launched. This is a continuation of the state project, designed to inform the Russian military about the possibilities of laying down arms and preserving one’s health and life,” the message reads.

The “I want to live” project is designed to help Russian servicemen safely surrender to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Russians are guaranteed maintenance in accordance with the norms of the Geneva Conventions. Instead, Ukraine needs to replenish the exchange fund in order to return its defenders home.

For information on how to surrender to a prisoner of war, Russian servicemen or their relatives should call the 24-hour numbers: +38 066 580 34 98 and +38 093 119 29 84.

Information about the surrender is available in Russian on the “I want to live” Telegram channel. (https://t.me/hochu_zhyt)

[DaffyVina]

Ukraine war: Many dead as rockets hit humanitarian convoy in Zaporizhzhia
Published
30 minutes ago

Destroyed humanitarian convoy in Zaporizhzhia, southern Ukraine. Photo|: 30 September 2022
IMAGE SOURCE,IVAN FEDOROV/TELEGRAM
Image caption, The convoy had planned to go to the Russian-occupied part of the Zaporizhzhia region



At least 23 people have died in a Russian attack on a humanitarian convoy in Ukraine's southern Zaporizhzhia region, local officials say.

Another 28 people were injured in the regional capital Zaporizhzhia early on Friday. All the victims were civilians.

The people in the convoy had planned to travel to the Russian-occupied part of the region to pick up their relatives and also deliver humanitarian aid.

A Russian-installed local official blamed Ukraine for the deadly attack.

It comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin is preparing for a signing ceremony in Moscow to annex Zaporizhzhia along with Ukraine's Donetsk, Luhansk and Kherson regions.

The attempted annexation follows self-styled referendums in the eastern and southern regions, which have been condemned by Ukraine and the West as a sham.

"The enemy launched a rocket attack on the outskirts of the regional centre," Zaporizhzhia regional head Oleksandr Starukh said in a post on social media.

"People were queueing to go the temporarily occupied territory to pick up their relatives, to take away aid."

Mr Starukh added that medics and rescue teams were working on the scene.

Meanwhile, Moscow-installed regional official Vladimir Rogov blamed "Ukrainian militants" for the attack, Russian state-run media reported.

He also said that 23 people were killed.

Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, and Moscow currently controls the bigger part of the Zaporizhzhia region, including Europe's biggest nuclear power plant there - but not the regional capital.

[DaffyVina]

Ukraine war: Tortured for refusing to teach in Russian
Published 5 days ago
By Zhanna Bezpiatchuk & Sofia Bettiza
Kharkiv Region, Ukraine

School director Lidiya Tilna sat on a sofa holding a Ukrainian flag
Image caption, Head teacher Lidiya Tilna says she was detained and beaten for refusing to teach a Russian curriculum

In the past two weeks, Ukrainian forces say they have taken back 6,000 sq km (2,317 sq miles) of territory, liberating communities that have been under Russian control for more than six months. School teachers in these areas have told the BBC there has been a systematic attempt to eliminate the Ukrainian curriculum and replace it with a Russian agenda.

Travelling east of Kharkiv, to the recently liberated cities of Balakliya and Vovchansk, the BBC spoke to local teachers and staff who all described a similar pattern of forced assimilation. First the destruction of property: school textbooks, Ukrainian flags, children's work - including wall displays on famous Ukrainian writers or cultural icons. But then, a siege upon the teachers themselves.

Standing proudly amongst a sea of Ukrainian textbooks is head teacher Liliya Sirous. She says she was given a list of more than 2,200 books and told to destroy them all. But instead, she hid them. Replaced with a new curriculum of Russian history, literature, and language, for six months Liliya's secret library remained untouched.

Liliya in a room with piles of textbooks
Image caption, Head teacher Liliya Sirous was told to destroy thousands of Ukrainian textbooks

But now, gazing back upon her treasure trove of thousands of books, neatly stacked and tied up with ribbons, she starts to cry. "My neighbour said: 'Why are you going to all this trouble? Russia has seized this land forever.'"

But Liliya says she never lost hope. "At the beginning of the school term, we were told we would have to teach our students that Ukraine was a territory of Russia, namely Malorussia ['Little Russia']," says Inna Mandryka, deputy director at Balakliya Five school.

Inna was one of the teachers who refused to cooperate. After being removed from her post, she carried on working every night from her basement by candlelight.

As the shelling continued overhead, she created a syllabus of online lessons. When she had access to the internet, she would distribute her work to teachers scattered all over Ukraine and Europe.

Together, Inna's network of allies has managed to support close to 100 students in the past six months from all over occupied Ukraine.

Inna stands close to her old school
Image caption, Inna launched an underground online school from her basement

In another school, just over 100km (62 miles) north of Balakliya, in the village of Ivanivka, head teacher Lidiya Tina - a professional educator with more than 40 years' experience - says she was detained for 19 days after refusing to set up a Russian school.

"As I was trying to flee Kharkiv, I was detained. A car pulled up and three masked men with assault rifles got out. They put a gun to my throat and ripped up my teaching diploma in front of my face," says Lidiya, 60.

She says a bag was put over her head and then she was placed in solitary confinement for five days. "My soul ached," says Lidiya. "I thought: 'No-one knows where I am.'"

She says she was beaten and forced to kneel, and made to believe she would be executed. "They tried to force me to learn the lyrics of the Russian anthem, but I refused."

The Russian authorities did not respond to the BBC's request to comment on Lidiya's claims.

There was pressure not just on teachers, but parents too. "Parents were threatened that if they didn't send their children back to school, their kids would be taken to an orphanage," says Svitlana Shvid, head of education in the Balakliya region, with oversight of its 19 schools.

In the Vovchansk region, teachers told the BBC how Russian guards were stationed in classrooms while students tried to study.

The BBC asked the Russian authorities to comment on alleged threats to parents, but they did not respond.

Students in Balakliya city are keen to return to school soon. It has been two weeks since the liberation of their city, and young people are finally able to go outside again and hang out with friends.

Best friends Daria, Veronica and Milena on a basketball court
Image caption, Best friends Daria, Veronica and Milena on a basketball court in Balakliya city

On the basketball court, 14-year-old Daria is playing with her friends. She asked her mum not to send her to the Russia-run school during the occupation. Now, since its liberation, she is looking forward to going back.

"I've spent months in our basement after Russian soldiers shelled our house and threw a grenade in our backyard."

Enjoying their rekindled freedom, 13-year-old Milena agrees. "Right now, our aim is just to survive," she says. "I'm not dreaming about anything else."

[DaffyVina]

Ukraine war: The families who made it through the new Iron Curtain

Published 1 day ago
By Paul Adams
BBC News, Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine

Zaporizhzhia reception centre
IMAGE SOURCE,MATT GODDARD/BBC
Image caption, Zaporizhzhia's makeshift reception centre sees few arrivals these days

Moscow's move to annex parts of Ukraine has sent a new Iron Curtain down across a vast swathe of territory - cutting off an unknown number of people from their own country.

Until 1 October, Ukrainians were able, with difficulty, to move to and from across the front lines.

From a crossing point at Vasylivka, on the eastern bank of the Dnipro river, some would travel to nearby non-occupied Zaporizhzhia to visit relatives, buy food or medicines.

But many left for good, carrying what they could with them, in search of new lives in areas not under Russian occupation. Some travelled on to Europe.

On average, about 1,000 people used to arrive every day at a makeshift reception centre in the carpark of a DIY superstore on the edge of Zaporizhzhia.

On 30 September, with Russia's self-styled "referendums" over and annexation being announced in Moscow, local police said that figure rose to 1,616.

But then the flow almost stopped.

The following day, 50 people arrived. On Sunday 2 October, it was down to just eight.

Reports from Vasylivka, meanwhile, spoke of huge lines of people in cars desperate to leave.

Ivan Fedorov
IMAGE SOURCE,MATT GODDARD/BBC
Image caption, People are desperate to leave Russian-occupied areas, Mayor Ivan Fedorov says

"The queue to leave the occupied territories is 4,500 people," the mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov, told us from his temporary office in Zaporizhzhia. "An elderly man died in the queue yesterday."

Civilians from Melitopol were trying any route they could, Fedorov said, including through Crimea, but there were long lines that way too.

"Those who left the east before 1 October managed to cross the passage to Zaporizhzhia within two days," said a source in Kherson who asked to remain anonymous.

"But a friend of mine who left on Thursday is still there. They have to sleep in their cars for the fourth day in a row."

On Monday, the reception centre in Zaporizhzhia was almost deserted. The car park where barriers are arranged to deal with convoys of vehicles was empty.

Zaporizhzhia reception centre
IMAGE SOURCE,MATT GODDARD/BBC
There was almost no-one in the large white tent where blankets and clothes were piled up, ready to be handed out to new arrivals.

We met 19-year old Maksym Bezhan, travelling with his mother, young brother and family cat - three of just 43 people to arrive that day.

They were all exhausted after a four-day trip from their home in a village near the port city of Berdyansk.

"It was frightening to get out," he told us. "We were afraid we'd encounter a Russian soldier in a bad mood; that we'd be turned around and sent back home."

There were other worries too. Would the soldiers check his phone? His computer?

"After the invasion," he said, "I became very pro-Ukrainian."

Maksym Bezhan, his mother, brother and the family cat
IMAGE SOURCE,MATT GODDARD/BBC
Image caption,
Maksym Bezhan (left) and his family made it after a gruelling four-day trip

The family spent nights sleeping in the car. "It was raining on Sunday," Maksym said. "It was very uncomfortable to sit in the car. All our bones ached. But it was too cold to go outside."

The family had very little money. Maksym's mother bought food for his younger brother but refused to eat any herself.

"People are very tired there," he said of the queues around Vasylivka. "They're barely surviving. They're running out of patience and money. There's an atmosphere of tiredness and despair."

One of the main holdups since annexation is a new Russian exit form. All those who want to leave are obliged to complete it online and wait for a reply.

It asks for a lot of information. Not just the names and passport details of applicants, but their mobile phone and IMEI (phone identification) numbers, contact information for their hosts, purpose of their trip and details of all relatives living in Ukraine.

"Have you ever done military/state service in Ukraine from May 2014 to April 2022?" it asks. "If not, specify the reason."

"Have you been a member of any [political] parties of NGOs on the territory of Ukraine?"

It's basically a visa application, underlining Russia's insistence that this is now an international frontier.

Girl in reception centre
IMAGE SOURCE,MATT GODDARD/BBC
Image caption,
Families who got through are hoping for a new life beyond the reach of the Kremlin

The head of Zaporizhzhia's Ukrainian regional military administration, Oleksandr Starukh, said Russia was trying to build a "state border" at Vasylivka. Until Friday, no such form existed.

Its appearance is causing fear and confusion. Telegram chat groups set up to help people leave are full of anxious questions.

"I'm going with my daughter through Vasylivka," writes Sofia. "My husband is in Poland. Will they let me through with her, without his permission?"

"Please help me," Andrii writes. "A 20-year old guy wants to go to hospital. People say it's better not to say that. Who wrote what when applying for a pass."

"We've been sitting near Dneprorudny [west of Vasylivka] for 4 days," complains Viraliy. "We've not received a response yet."

And there are other, more domestic concerns too. "Maybe someone saw a grey young cat with green eyes running around?" Olena asks. "He escaped from the car."

Another woman, posting anonymously to a Telegram channel, spoke of families, some of them with babies, living in their cars, short of food and running out of money.

"In addition to this," she wrote, "not far from where cars are parked, hostilities are taking place. Rockets sometimes fly over people."

For now, movement across the front line is impossible in either direction.

Following last Friday's rocket attack on the outskirts of Zaporizhzhia, which killed at least 30 civilians, the authorities in Zaporizhzhia banned all movement into Russian-controlled territory for an indefinite period, citing security concerns.