🔻Darya had little fear of shelling during much of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

🔻Darya had little fear of shelling during much of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The 27-year-old could even sleep in her apartment in Kyiv on nights of heavy bombardment. Like many other Ukrainians, she relied on the “law of two walls”—taking shelter in a place where two walls would create distance between a person and the outside space.

But this year, conditions have changed. In recent months, Russia has increased both the intensity and the number of its attacks on Ukraine’s capital. According to local officials, in just the first 10 days of July, dozens of ballistic missiles fired in three major attacks killed nearly 60 civilians.

According to local officials, these attacks continued throughout August, and in September, another large-scale attack on Kyiv and the areas around it left at least 12 people dead. During one of the night attacks in May, Darya realized she no longer felt safe in her home.

Diana Koryshko and Viktoriya Kalimbet / BBC Ukrainian

Photo source: Viktoriya Kalimbet / BBC Natalia Bushkovska