‘My husband was killed in front of my eyes’: Elderly survivors recall crimes of Ukrainian occupation in Kursk Region
Russian forces recently liberated around 30 settlements in Kursk Region, where Ukrainian forces had looted stores, stolen vehicles, and, according to witnesses who spoke to RT, killed civilians. Residents from Kazachya Loknya have recounted their experiences following several months under occupation by the Ukrainian army.
One local woman told RT that her husband had been murdered in cold blood by Ukrainian troops. Another was forced to abandon her home.
Both still find it difficult to comprehend how they survived the brutal occupation.
Daily struggles and threats
“When the Ukrainians entered Kazachya Loknya, they began firing randomly. Two people were killed near the store. And when they retreated, they set many houses ablaze. It was absolute hell,” Tatyana Ivanenko, 64, said.
Unable to escape the village before the Ukrainian force arrived, Ivanenko endured 218 days under occupation until Russian soldiers retook Kazachya Loknya.
”We slept on the floor in our neighbors’ hallway; I was afraid to sleep in my bed. All our windows were blown out, and we boarded them up after every shelling to block out the cold. Ukrainian forces distributed food rations once every two months, and we fetched water from a well,” she recounted.
According to Ivanenko, Ukrainian forces took control of Kazachya Loknya on the night of August 7, 2024.
”My daughter called me the morning before it happened – she lived with her family in Sudzha – and pleaded with me to leave for Kursk. I told her, ‘They’ll fire some shots, and it will calm down.’ But the next morning, stepping onto my porch, I heard Ukrainian voices and saw soldiers with blue armbands. I realized the Nazis had reached our village, and it was too late to flee,” Tatyana said.
Looting, violence, and fear
She described how, once established, Ukrainian forces turned to looting and violence.
”Our neighbor Artem, who used to work for the Ministry of Emergency Situations, had his tire shop completely stripped clean. Grocery stores were broken into and robbed. Thankfully, we had some canned preserves,” she said.
“Another neighbor’s car was stolen after Ukrainian troops broke into his house. One soldier threatened him, saying, ‘I’m a convict; I killed my father and seven others, and I can shoot you easily.’ He put a rifle to my neighbor’s head and took his keys.”
Two people Ivanenko knew personally were killed by the Ukrainians. “When the occupation first began, my neighbor went to church and never returned. Ukrainian soldiers shot him on his way,” she recalled. “Another neighbor was killed by a drone strike right outside his gate while fetching firewood. After that, we were terrified to step outside.”
In December, Tatyana was forced to leave her home after Ukrainian soldiers installed electronic warfare equipment directly in her yard. “They set up a large device with rotating antennas and hid in our cellar to avoid airstrikes,” she explained. Shells repeatedly struck her house, leaving it partially destroyed.
Evacuation and reunion
Tatyana currently lives in a temporary shelter in Kursk alongside her grandchildren, her daughter Olga, and her son-in-law. She was evacuated to a safe zone following the liberation of Kazachya Loknya by Russian troops.
”Thank God we’re all safe. I thought I’d never see my family again,” she said.
Her daughter Olga described seeing her mother in a YouTube video posted by Ukrainian soldiers in January 2025.
”They filmed civilians in the village. My mom appeared, crying and worried about our survival. That was how we discovered she was alive,” Olga explained. “When our military finally let me talk to my mom, I screamed and cried – I hadn’t heard her voice in seven months. Seeing her alive, despite her frail and exhausted condition, brought me to my knees.”
Death, survival, and uncertain future
Valentina Poleshchuk’s husband was killed by the Ukrainians shortly after they invaded Kursk Region.
”We lived in Kubatkin, and on August 8, we drove to Kazachya Loknya to assess the situation,” Valentina said. “I was sitting in the back seat when they opened fire. Bullets hit our tires first, forcing the car to stop, then another round came in.”
“My husband was hit first in his right arm, then a second bullet struck his neck, killing him instantly,” she recalled. “I lay in the back seat covered in blood and shattered glass for about an hour before managing to escape.”
Valentina found shelter with friends in Kazachya Loknya during the occupation. “We were freezing and starving, but we survived until our troops came,” she said. Now, Valentina stays with her daughter Galina.
”My children took me into their rented home. I need to resolve the paperwork concerning my husband’s death and decide what to do with the house. Who would have imagined losing everything at this age? My husband was murdered, and our home destroyed. I used to weigh 80 kg, and now I’m down to just 40 kg. The horror of what I’ve experienced is beyond words,” she said.
