Catch up

The aid car and I are temporarily out of action. Adriana, the aid car, is being checked out at the garage, having a misfiring issue, and I underwent minor surgery on Friday. Gives me some time to catch up on things. 

The aid that we took to Kharkiv has finally been distributed. It turned out to be much more difficult than envisaged. The area where the aid was destined for is the scene of intense fighting between the Ukrainian army and illegal Russian invaders.
Many of the villages where the aid was planned to be delivered have either been totally, or partially, destroyed. This has led to thousands of internally displaced people, fleeing their homes, looking for safety. Our aid helped to support some of these people.

This seems to be a Russian tactic. Really a version of the scorched earth tactic. They literally destroy everything and then use expendable manpower and weaponry to move forward. They suffer enormous losses but it doesn't matter. There are always new men to sacrifice. Given the imbalance in manpower and weaponry, it's amazing how resolutely and effectively the Ukrainians are defending this area to the north east of Kharkiv.
Civilian deaths continue, both in the Kharkiv and Odesa areas, as well as elsewhere.

The aid in Kherson was also distributed to families.

In Odesa yesterday there was a small demonstration in support of the soldiers who were captured, after the Azovstal steelworks siege in Mariupol, where soldiers held out, against massive odds, for months against the Russians..Yesterday was the 2nd anniversary of the capture of soldiers over a one week period in May 2022. Some 1000 are still in Russian captivity, in allegedly harsh, inhumane conditions, including being tortured. The cruelty continues. But they are not forgotten.

And, finally, the band plays on.

Given the war, it's wonderful to see the spirit of human nature continuing. On Sunday afternoon in Odesa, the band was playing in the pavilion in City Gardens, to the appreciation of the large crowd. They really were very good. So life goes on, as it should.

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