“People Didn’t Have Time to Reach the Shelter”: Aftermath of a Russian Guided Aerial Bomb Strike on a Five-Story Residential Building, Svessa, Sumy Region, January 2025
Photo credit:
OLEKSANDR SOLOMKO
Photo credit:
OLEKSANDR SOLOMKO
I chose journalism as a profession because I’ve always wanted to be at the heart of events — where history is being made.
It’s also always difficult to film stories of people who have lost loved ones. You share their grief but can do nothing to help. These stories serve as a tribute to those who died defending Ukraine.
What helps me adapt is a sense of duty. The mission of Ukrainian journalists today is to show the world the crimes committed by Russian forces so that they are not left unpunished. By chance, documenting the Russian war crimes in the northern Sumy region has fallen on the shoulders of our crew, and we will make sure to see this work through, despite all the difficulties.
The biggest challenge now is safety, as our work often involves trips to combat zones, where journalists repeatedly come under Russian shelling —
Most of the materials we’ve produced since February 24, 2022, have focused on human losses. Nearly every Russian strike on Sumy region takes civilian lives, destroys residential buildings, and public facilities. Journalists from the “Yampil.INFO” information agency strive to showcase this pain to the world so that Russian crimes do not go unpunished.
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Cooperate with Oleksandr
a person with a press vest becomes a target for Russian soldiers.
Additionally, it was important for me to contribute to society, which needs truthful information.
Head of the “Yampil.INFO” information agency.
Since April 2022, Solomko has been documenting combat operations in the northern Sumy region as a war correspondent.
Oleksandr
Solomko
Today, though, it is not about building communities. My work is now dedicated to the people who have devoted themselves to defending the country and fighting for Ukraine’s independence and freedom.