Ukraine: See how soldiers and citizens marked Christmas in a war-torn region
CNN, Associated Press
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President Volodymyr Zelensky called on Ukrainians to have “patience and faith” in a defiant Christmas address after a deadly wave of Russian strikes pounded the southern city of Kherson.
Ten months into Russia’s war on Ukraine, Zelensky spoke of endurance and pushing through to the end, while acknowledging that “freedom comes at a high price.”
He urged the nation to stand firm in the face of a grim winter of energy blackouts, the absence of loved ones and the ever-present threat of Russian attacks.
Zelensky’s message came after Ukrainian officials said Russia had launched deadly rocket strikes into downtown Kherson on Christmas Eve, killing at least 10 people and injuring dozens. Zelensky described those attacks as “killing for the sake of intimidation and pleasure.”
Felipe Dana - staff, AP
A boy sits during a Christmas mass at an Orthodox Church in Bobrytsia, outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Dec. 25, 2022. Sunday began with the sound of sirens, but that didn't prevent people from gathering in the church and attend for the first time a Christmas mass on Dec. 25.
Felipe Dana - staff, AP
A boy sits during a Christmas mass at an Orthodox Church in Bobrytsia, outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Dec. 25, 2022. Sunday began with the sound of sirens, but that didn't prevent people from gathering in the church and attend for the first time a Christmas mass on Dec. 25.
Members of the Ukrainian scouting organization Plast hold the Bethlehem Light of Peace during a Christmas church service in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Dec. 25, 2022.
Evgeniy Maloletka - stringer, AP
Members of the Ukrainian scouting organization Plast hold the Bethlehem Light of Peace during a Christmas church service in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Sunday, Dec. 25, 2022.
Ukrainian battalion commander Kosyantyn Zhydkov "Kostya Dziu," center, shows his operational area Saturday to Serhiy Melnyk "Marsel," left, a general of the Ukrainian army, and "Dyadya Roma," right, a Ukrainian brigade commander, at a front line in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine.
Evgeniy Maloletka
Ukrainian battalion commander Kosyantyn Zhydkov "Kostya Dziu," center, shows his operational area Saturday to Serhiy Melnyk "Marsel," left, a general of the Ukrainian army, and "Dyadya Roma," right, a Ukrainian brigade commander, at a front line in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine.
Soldiers from the Azov Regiment, several members of which were captured by Russia in May after the fall of Mariupol, demand their fellow soldiers be freed at a prison-style Christmas table Saturday during a flashmob demonstration in Kyiv, Ukraine. Relatives of Azov soldiers hold posters reading "Bring Azov back."
Efrem Lukatsky
Soldiers from the Azov Regiment, several members of which were captured by Russia in May after the fall of Mariupol, demand their fellow soldiers be freed at a prison-style Christmas table Saturday during a flashmob demonstration in Kyiv, Ukraine. Relatives of Azov soldiers hold posters reading "Bring Azov back."
