Tearful Goodbyes, Babies In Basements: Heartbreaking Realities Of Families In War-Torn Ukraine

It's been nearly a week after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. News has been filled with scenes of catastrophe as Ukraine reeled from Russia's attacks. On social media, videos show how fathers, pregnant women, babies, families in general are being negatively affected by the crises.

Putin justified the attacks under claims that it's only putting an end to the genocide supposedly happening in the east of Ukraine. Ukraine has already rejected this claim, as reported by Reuters.

There are also a lot of speculations about Russia's real intention on why it is invading Ukraine. (Read more about this here and here) But one thing is clear: the violent crisis in Ukraine is separating families and hurting many civilians, including children, babies, and pregnant women.

Heartbreaking reality in war-torn Ukraine

Below are some heartbreaking scenes captured on videos and photos, showing how families are being negatively affected by what U.S. President Joe Biden described as an "unprovoked and unjustified attack by Russian military forces" on Ukraine.

Fathers' tearful goodbye as their families seek shelter

Since the conflict began, all-male citizens of Ukraine ages 18 to 60 are prohibited from leaving the country, according to the State Border Guard Service, as reported by the CNN. Because of this, fathers are forced to bid goodbye to their children, fleeing the country.

A video uploaded by a verified account on Twitter shows a heartwrenching moment of a dad sending his daughter off to a bus as she seeks shelter. "A Ukrainian father says goodbye to his daughter as he sends her to safety," the Twitter user captioned the post. 

Fox News also shared photos of a father giving his son a kiss before the child gets on board a train.

Meanwhile, a boy was recorded on Feb. 27, 2022, sharing his thoughts after getting separated from his dad. In the video uploaded on Washington Post's Instagram account, the boy was seen bravely fighting his tears as he told how his dad would be "helping our heroes, army. He might even fight."

Pregnant women and babies seek shelter in hospital basements

While other families quickly took their chances to flee Ukraine, some, like patients in the hospital, only took safety in the basement as gunfights and bombings happened above them.

In a verified video obtained by Washington Post, Kherson Regional Clinical Hospital's basement got packed by "women who'd recently given birth, premature babies, a woman in need of an operation, and children of staff. "

Meanwhile, children who are in need of medical attention also hid in the basement in a hospital located in Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, as reported by The New York Times.

How Russia-Ukraine conflict will affect Philippines?

Even though Ukraine is thousands of miles away from the Philippines, the country can still feel the impact of the conflict. The most obvious effect is on global trade and fuel prices. 
An economist explains that there's a high possibility that basic goods such as wheat and soybean will go higher. (Read more in this Reportr.world article)

There are also Filipinos in Ukraine, whom the government vowed to help. According to Reportr.world, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday that 13 Filipinos were repatriated from Ukraine. They are among 40 evacuees who left Kyiv. (Click here to read more)

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