Five Ukrainian children were sleeping peacefully in their beds on March 2 when Russia launched the overnight drone attack against their hometown of Odesa that took their lives.
Some came from different families but lived in the same apartment building in the southern Ukrainian port city.
Instead of waking up in the morning as usual and continuing their lives in war-torn Ukraine, it was March 3 before their five little bodies were retrieved from under the rubble of their homes.
In the early hours of March 2, Russia attacked Odesa with drones, hitting a multi-storied apartment building in one of the city's residential neighborhoods, killing a total of 12 people, including the five children.
The children were four-month-old and seven-month-old infants, two boys, aged three and nine, and an eight-year-old girl.
"It's an unspeakable and horrific tragedy for Odesa and the whole of Ukraine," Odesa Oblast Governor Oleh Kiper said of the deaths.
But it’s not the first such tragedy – since day one of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, civilian areas in Odesa, as in other cities around the country, have been relentlessly bombarded by the Russian military.
At least 10,582 civilians have been killed, and nearly 20,000 have been injured since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, according to the latest report by the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU).
The number of confirmed civilian casualties includes 587 children killed by the war. The figures are certainly underestimates, as the UN records only deaths it can itself confirm, and Russia refuses to allow UN agencies access to the parts of Ukraine it occupies.
Tymofii, 4 months old,
killed together with his mother
Baby boy Tymofii Haidarzhy was the youngest victim of the brutal March 2 Russian attack on Odesa. He was only four months old.
"He was a dark-haired, adorable baby," says Tymofii's uncle, Serhii Sidak.
"I called him 'bublik' (a small round bread roll) because he was so round and chubby."
The night before the tragedy, Tymofii's family, Odesa-based florist Anna Haidarzhy and photographer Serhii Haidarzhy, along with their older daughter, two-year-old Yelyzaveta, went to a local church as they usually did.
"They looked happy that evening. Everyone was carrying little Tymofii in their arms. Everyone loved holding and spending time with him, myself included," says Sidak.
"Last time I saw them was at around 9 p.m. They were among the last ones to leave the church."
"If I only had known it would be the last time I saw them…"
In his worst nightmares, Sidak could not even imagine that his sister Anna, 31, and his beloved nephew Tymofii would be killed just a couple of hours later that night.
When the attack took place, little Tymofii was sleeping peacefully in the arms of his mother. Anna's husband, Serhii Haidarzhy, was in another room with Yelyzaveta.
"Serhii was putting their daughter to bed in the children's room. He usually did that. But that evening, he fell asleep together with her."
"They (Serhii and Yelyzaveta) were woken up by the loud explosion and shaking. He said he immediately ran into Anna's room, but there was no room there anymore."
"There was a hole, and everything was on fire."
"He jumped out of the house, and some neighbors took his daughter. I arrived at the site immediately."
Sidak says they helped rescue a woman from the ruins and Serhii thought it was his wife Anna.
"We pulled her out and realized it wasn't her… Serhii had hope until the very end that his loved ones were alive."
"When I saw that her room was gone, I understood everything. There were nine floors, and they all collapsed onto her room… The bodies of Anna and Tymofiy were found in the basement (although the apartment was on the 2nd floor)."
Sidak says they still can’t believe that such a horrible tragedy happened to their family.
"Anna's daughter... It's tough for her now. It's difficult to explain to her that her mother is gone… She constantly asks for her, calls her…"
"They were a very happy family. They had plans for their life and wanted (to build) their own house," Sidak says.
"Anna was always smiling. I don't remember her crying or being sad. And Tymofii… he probably took after her. I haven't seen such a child who is constantly smiling. Every time I picked him up, he smiled…"
Mark, 3 years old,
killed together with his father
Three-year-old Mark was killed together with his father, Vitalii Pohozhyn, 35, originally from Donetsk Oblast.
Mark's mother, Anastasiia, was seriously wounded in the attack and is currently in hospital. She suffered a severe hip fracture, and her broken ribs punctured her lungs, according to her sister Mariia Martyniuk.
She has undergone several surgeries and will need a long time to recover, Martyniuk says.
Due to her condition, Anastasiia only recently found out that her loved ones had been killed.
"She really struggles with it. She cried a lot (when finding out)," Martyniuk says.
Mark – or Markusha, as his loved ones gently referred to him – was a long-awaited baby for the family.
"I remember how we talked to him in the belly when Anastasiia was at the end of her pregnancy,” Martyniuk says. “Not only Vitalii and Anastasiia, but our whole family awaited his birth. Our mother was even with Anastasiia during childbirth, supporting her to make it easier for her to deliver."
"When Mark was born, we were all so happy, constantly strolling with him in Crimea Park (in Odesa). It was our favorite park for walks."
"He was a very kind child,” Martyniuk says. “We have a funny video where Mark's grandmother pretends to cry, and Mark gives her a ball to cheer her up."
On Friday evening, a few hours before the explosion, the sisters had their "usual video call."
"Mark was a bit playful and didn't want to be filmed… If only we knew that we were hearing his voice for the last time…"
"Mark was a wonderful and curious child. We loved him very much," Martyniuk says.
“Markusha, we will miss you so much. Rest peacefully, our little bun."
Serhii, 9, Zlata, 8, and Yelyzaveta, 7 months old,
killed with their parents
It had been less than a year since Ukrainian soldier Oleh Kravets, 41, and his wife Tetiana, 36, bought an apartment in Odesa.
They had been looking forward to a joyful life there with their three little children, nine-year-old Serhii, eight-year-old Zlata, and seven-month-old Yelyzaveta.
But Russia destroyed all their futures when the entire family was killed overnight on March 2.
"I spoke with Oleh the day before... Honestly, I still can't believe they're gone. It’s beyond cruel that the whole family was killed," says Oleh's fellow soldier and family friend, Serhii Kovalchuk.
Oleh and Tetiana, both former service members of the 56th Motorized Brigade, met in Mariupol a couple of years ago. Tetiana already had children from her previous marriage, and Oleh had a son, Kovalchuk says.
However, Oleh "accepted and treated Tetiana's children as his own," Kovalchuk says.
"They were very smart and kind children."
The family was in Mariupol when the all-out war broke out. To save their children, they decided to flee the city to a safer area, to Odesa.
"They bought this apartment, a fateful one… I helped them move in."
"Oleh had been dreaming about it for a long time. He was so proud (of purchasing the apartment)."
In Odesa, their long-awaited baby girl Yelyzaveta (Liza) was born. "They were so happy," says Kovalchuk.
"Oleh loved his children very much and cared a lot for his family. They loved playing football together. The children liked to draw a lot. Whenever I came to visit them, there were so many of their colorful drawings," he says.
"It was a very friendly family. I don't understand why it happened to them… Their kids were just little angels who simply rejoiced in life."
"I remember when I helped Oleh move to the new flat, I saw that other buildings surrounded the house on all sides. We thought for sure nothing (no strike) would reach there," Kovalchuk says.
On the eve of the tragedy, Oleh met with his fellow soldiers and returned home earlier to spend time with his family, says Kovalchuk. He stopped by the grocery store to get some treats for his loved ones and headed home to have dinner with them.
"Usually, when the air raid siren sounded, they didn't ignore it. They hid in the bathroom. This time, the air raid siren went on late at night, and they simply didn't hear it in their deep sleep, so they didn't hide," Kovalchuk assumes. He said that the bathroom where the family had usually hid remained intact after the attack.
"If they had heard the air raid siren and hidden as they usually did, none of this would have happened...But now the entire family is gone."
“We should never forget them. We should never forget what Russia did to them."
Note from the author:
Hi! Daria Shulzhenko here. I wrote this piece for you. Since the first day of Russia's all-out war, I have been working almost non-stop to tell the stories of those affected by Russia’s brutal aggression. By telling all those painful stories, we are helping to keep the world informed about the reality of Russia’s war against Ukraine. By becoming the Kyiv Independent's member, you can help us continue telling the world the truth about this war.
Daria Shulzhenko
