In recent days, a photographic portrait of the Bazilevich family has been shared by countless Ukrainians on social media. A bright family image in color, it shows the girls and their mother wearing traditional embroidered shirts, radiating joy as they smile at the camera.
Then, a second picture appeared — the same image but with the four female family members shown in black and white, with only the father remaining in color.
And then social media feeds were flooded with endless heartbreaking images from the funeral in Lviv.
The oldest daughter, Yarina, was 21, a dedicated program manager. The middle daughter, Daryna, 18, was studying culture at the Catholic University in Lviv.
Both girls were scouts in Plast during their childhood. And the youngest, Emilia, just seven, loved music and played the piano. Their mother Eugenia’s friends recall she knew more about perfumes than anyone else, and organized yoga classes for mothers and kids, bringing tranquility and joy to the community.
The family had been asleep in their home when Russian missiles ravaged residential buildings in the historic heart of Lviv.
Firefighters, though this was difficult to confirm beyond doubt, said they believed the family had scrambled into the building stairwell — following the two-wall rule, seeking refuge at least from shattering glass. At some point, the father went back to their apartment to get water for his daughters. As he was about to return, a missile struck, causing the staircase to collapse and entombing the mother and girls in the rubble.
Another image then appeared — of Yaroslav, clearly shocked and his face smeared with blood, gazing off into the distance.
And like many Ukrainians who have experienced endless air raids, I thought of all the recent nights when I thought it acceptable to place my child in a hallway to sleep, safely distant from windows during an air raid; and how I continued with mundane tasks — making tea, feeding the dog, working. I convinced myself that he was safe.
Yaroslav’s experience haunts me, and many others. Now I stay in the hallway. Just like all Ukrainian parents, I guess. I’d prefer to die with my boy and avoid the pain of survival.
The Lviv attack is not a rarity. It is a commonplace.
As 2024 unfolds, Russia appears increasingly focused on targeting civilians and children. Proving intent is an arduous task: even when in July missiles struck a children’s hospital in Kyiv, devoid of nearby military targets, or when the historical center of Lviv, with its narrow streets and ancient buildings, is blasted. It happens again and again. Are we to make excuses for our tormentors?
We can focus on the illegality of such attacks, but Russia sneers at international law. It is proud of its indifference to human life, or any of humanity’s caring sentiments. It hardly matters anyway what’s a war crime and what isn’t, as long as war crimes carry no cost and war criminals can walk free, or fly to Mongolia.
This has been continuing throughout the years of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, during the 10 years since Russia occupied Crimea and started the war in the Eastern regions, during the wars in Georgia and Chechnya.
What matters are the small things. Like hoping that a missile will take you at the same time as those you love.
Lera Burlakova is a Democracy Fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA.) She is a Ukrainian journalist and former soldier who served as an infantrywoman from 2014-2017 after joining up following the Russian invasion of Crimea. Her war diary ‘Life P.S.’ received the UN Women in Arts award in 2021.
Europe’s Edge is CEPA’s online journal covering critical topics on the foreign policy docket across Europe and North America. All opinions expressed on Europe’s Edge are those of the author alone and may not represent those of the institutions they represent or the Center for European Policy Analysis. CEPA maintains a strict intellectual independence policy across all its projects and publications.
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