I BROUGHT THE BAD WEATHER WITH ME

Young woman from Bohodukhiv, Kharkiv Region, early XXth century

Girlfriends from Pryluky, Chernihiv Region, 1928

Russian military has bombed the largest children's hospital in Ukraine

Okhmatdyt (Охматдит in Ukrainian is short for охорона материнства й дитинства = protection of motherhood and childhood) is known to most Ukrainians, even those who have never has children or have never been to Kyiv, as the main children treatment facility in the country.

In the morning of July the 8th, about 60% of the facility have been destroyed by a Russian missile Х-101.

As of now, it is known of at least two dead adults (one of them was a nephrologist at the hospital) and several injured children, and there still are people under the rubble (yes, including children). Lots of medical equipment has been destroyed, much of it cannot be found anywhere else in Ukraine.

The toxicology department is the most damaged one, which is also the location where children have been undergoing hemodialysis at the time of the strike. Many of the patients did not have the option of being transported to the bomb shelter promptly after the air raid alert, as they require intensive care treatment (such as kids on life support, lung ventilation, in sterile boxes etc.)

Patients are being evacuated to other hospitals around the country, rescue operation at the strike sight still underway.

In case any one of you is willing to help, I'm sharing a link to the Okhmatdyt charity fund (the page is in Ukrainian, but there are instructions for foreigners as well — please scroll until you see info in English).

I just have to add that it was a direct and deliberate strike — two other hospitals have been under attack that day as well (one in Kyiv too, and one in Dnipro).

May the good people of the world live in safety without fearing for the lives of their children, and may those who bomb children's hospitals answer for their crimes

The Russian government has tweeted “proof” of Ukrainian attempts to create a nuclear bomb, including a photo of alleged uranium and plutonium devices.

People quickly found that the photo they used was taken in Slovenia in 2010, and shows a bag of smoke detectors (which contain small amounts of the radioactive Americium-241)