There were no regular celebrations on Ukraine's 31st Independence Day this year, as Russia continues to wage its brutal war against the country.
On Aug. 24, Ukraine’s air defense was put on high alert. Local authorities across the country extended curfews, and Kyiv banned mass gatherings.
Russia carried out a number of missile strikes on Ukraine on this symbolic date. The most deadly one targeted a train station in the village of Chaplyne, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, killing at least 15 people. In total, 25 people were killed in the village as a result of Russian attacks on Aug. 24.
Still, despite the heightened risk of strikes and no scheduled celebrations, some Ukrainians flocked to central Kyiv to honor Independence Day.
Many of them were dressed in vyshyvankas, traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirts, and carried Ukrainian flags. Some were spotted taking photos in front of burned and damaged Russian military vehicles, displayed on Kyiv’s main Khreshchatyk Street for the occasion.
A woman holds a Ukrainian flag as she stands in central Kyiv where damaged Russian military vehicles are displayed on Aug. 24, 2022, Ukraine's Independence Day. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
A soldier holds a boy by the hand as they walk in central Kyiv where damaged Russian military vehicles are displayed on Aug. 24, 2022, Ukraine's Independence Day. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
People hold a Ukrainian flag with the inscription "Crimea is Ukraine" as they pose for a photo in front of a damaged Russian military vehicle displayed in central Kyiv on Aug. 24, 2022, Ukraine's Independence Day. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
People pose for a photo in front of a damaged Russian military vehicle displayed in central Kyiv on Aug. 24, 2022, Ukraine's Independence Day. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
Children hold a Ukrainian flag as they pose for a photo in front of a damaged Russian military vehicle displayed in central Kyiv on Aug. 24, 2022. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
A boy does pull-ups on a damaged Russian military vehicle displayed in central Kyiv on Aug. 24, 2022, Ukraine's Independence Day. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
Women walk between damaged Russian military vehicles displayed in central Kyiv on Aug. 24, 2022, Ukraine's Independence Day. (Kostyantyn Chernichkin)
