Mother buries husband and toddler after devastating Russian attack

Heartbroken Anastasia Komarista buried her two-year-old son and husband on Wednesday, victims of the devastating Russian attack that obliterated their home in eastern Ukraine last week. In a rain-soaked cemetery, she was inconsolable, weeping over their coffins and asking for their forgiveness for being alive.

Anastasia cried…

“Forgive me! Forgive me! I don’t want to be here. I want to be lying next to you. I prayed to God to save you!”

The merciless Russian assault on Friday evening tore through Komarista’s top-floor flat in a quiet, residential area, annihilating the Soviet-era building. The city of Sloviansk, home to 110,000 residents, lies on the frontline of the industrial Donetsk region, which Russian President Vladimir Putin claims is part of Russia.

At the time of the attack, Komarista was at a nearby gym. Her 29 year old husband Sergei was at home with their son Maksym, and his uncle had popped in for a visit.

AFP journalists on site just moments after the strike witnessed the havoc wreaked by the missiles. A distraught woman was screaming, while rescue workers hurled a scorched stroller from the mangled fourth floor in search of survivors.

Concrete debris and shattered glass carpeted the street, with thick plumes of black smoke billowing from neighbouring homes pierced by shrapnel. Among the wreckage both in and around the courtyard playground were children’s crayon drawings and torn pages from schoolbooks.

The toddler was miraculously found alive but tragically died en route to the hospital in an ambulance.

The community gathered yesterday, candles in hand, to pay their respects at the local church, adorned with lingering Easter decorations. A priest leading the solemn ceremony said…

“Unbridled grief has befallen this family. Not just this family, but the whole city. What words could bring any consolation in this situation?”

With poignant blue and white silk draping adorning it, Maksym’s tiny coffin was carried by only two men. Visible above both caskets was the iconic Saint Basil’s Cathedral of Moscow’s Red Square, depicted in a large mural.

In an ongoing dispute fuelled by the conflict, the Orthodox Cathedral in Sloviansk falls under the Russian church’s jurisdiction.

Renowned for his “easy-going and empathetic” nature, Sergei was a phone repairman and football enthusiast who played in a local league. His grieving friends penned an open letter expressing their sorrow, adding…

“We hope that you are now with Pele and Maradona.”

S-300 missiles are designed to annihilate hostile air targets like enemy aircraft or other missiles. Russia has vast stockpiles, with each unit believed to cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

In the attack on Sloviansk, Russia launched eight such missiles, killing 15 people and injuring dozens more.

Despite its ongoing assertions that its forces do not target residential areas, the Kremlin faces accusations from Kyiv that responsibility for the ongoing civilian suffering in Ukraine lies with Russia for refusing to negotiate.

An estimated 470 children have lost their lives as a result of Russia’s invasion, according to Ukrainian prosecutors, although the true figure may be even higher.

In response to the brutal attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky lamented the devastation caused by Russia’s actions, noting how it “ruins and destroys all life.”

As the mourners huddled together, weeping and clutching roses, the priest implored them to remain hopeful for a brighter future. He said…

“A time of peace will surely come. This sorrow will surely pass.”