Russian shelling in Kyiv has left dozens of loved ones and neighbors dead under the rubble – losses that cannot be let go – as well as countless destroyed apartments.
In Kyiv, veterans are training in humanitarian demining to find their place in civilian life while applying their combat experience and skills. Learning to become a deminer after being wounded and leaving the Armed Forces allows them to continue serving in a new way – helping with Ukraine’s recovery.
At the National Military Memorial Cemetery, which opened on August 29, 2025, more than one hundred soldiers have already been laid to rest. Frontliner reporters observed the ongoing construction of this site and learned about the challenges Ukrainians face in burying their fallen defenders.
Radiation, wild animals, and “Shaheds.” At night near the ghost city of Prypiat, a mobile fire group from the 25th Brigade stands guard under a sky where threats can appear without warning.
Service members and veterans are excavating the Trypillian culture, thereby reclaiming themselves. They are rehabilitating through archaeology near Lehedzyne in Cherkasy Oblast.
On August 8, 2025, people in Kyiv bid farewell to Viktoriia Roshchyna, a 27-year-old journalist tortured to death while in Russian captivity. Her killing shocked the international community and became another stark reminder of Russia’s brutality and lawlessness.
He lost the memory of his daughter's birth, but he will never forget Russia's crimes against Ukraine. Ivan Liubysh-Kirdei, a Reuters war correspondent and winner of the George Gongadze Prize, was seriously wounded in the head during a missile attack on Kramatorsk in 2024. Almost a year later, he is reconstructing his life from the stories of his loved ones and the few memories that remain after his injury.
On May 25, another 303 Ukrainian service members were brought home as part of the large-scale "1000 for 1000" prisoner exchange.
Recent battlefield statistics highlight the extraordinary impact unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are having on the war in Ukraine. According to Kyiv’s military leadership, in January this year two-thirds of Russian military hardware losses were caused by attack drones. On the Ukrainian side, losses to Russian drone strikes are estimated to be running at a similar ratio.
After enduring months of brutal torture, men freed from Russian captivity are forced to continue battling for their survival. Many have returned to a life stripped of homes, money, and the care they should receive from the state. To support themselves and others like them, these former prisoners have come together to form a network called The Alumni.