Here's what you helped us achieve in the last week (Patreon)

Dear Kyiv Independent community members, 

We hope 2023 has been off to a good start for you and we hope you've been safe and well during the holidays.

We'd also like to welcome the 176 new members this week – thank you for supporting our reporting and keeping your attention on Ukraine. We wouldn't be here without you.

Here are some highlights from the Kyiv Independent over the last week:

Russia launched missiles at Ukraine on Dec. 31 and the first two days of the new year. We reported on the New Year's Eve missile attacks and talked to those who experienced the attacks in Kyiv first-hand. The attacks continued on Jan. 1 and Jan. 2, with Ukraine downing nearly all the drones. 

We wrote about how Ukrainians celebrate New Year, despite Russia's war. Asami Terajima's piece follows three different families, all with someone defending Ukraine, and their hopes for 2023. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he has ordered a temporary ceasefire between Jan. 6 and 7 in order for Orthodox Christians to attend Christmas services. The truce has been met with skepticism, and Zelensky has dismissed it, saying Russia doesn't want a real ceasefire.

Two of our most popular articles this week were reported from Bakhmut, the city now known as the site with the heaviest fighting of the war. Illia Ponomarenko's piece covers Ukraine's need for more artillery ammunition and Francis Farrell's piece looks at the front-line aerial unit surveilling the battle with drones. Above is a photo by Francis Farrell, showing Christmas decorations in the corridor where two Ukrainian soldiers operate their drones in Bakhmut on Dec. 29. 

We reported on how Russia has eroded Belarusian sovereignty. Maria Yeryoma's piece looks at how Russian has taken control of the county over the past few years, including economic dependence, military cooperation, and suppression of the Belarusian language. 

We also wrote about how a four-year-old boy survived a Russian artillery strike because his family covered him with their bodies. Mykyta Chibis, now five, survived the attack in Oskil, a village in Kharkiv, last March that killed four members of his family.

Thank you for standing by our side as we bring independent, locally-sourced news about Ukraine to the world.