At a vigil on the Brown campus today, a professor read a statement from one of the shooting victims, Hisham Awartani, a Brown student.

In the statement, Awartani expressed his appreciation for the outpouring of love and prayers and made a joke about being famous, but the statement took a more solemn tone as he wrote that the shooting was part of a larger story.

"This hideous crime did not happen in a vacuum. As much as I appreciate the love of every single one of you here today, I am but one casualty in a much wider conflict," the statement said. "Had I been shot in the West Bank, where I grew up, the medical services which saved my life here would have likely been withheld by the Israeli army. The soldier who would have shot me would go home and never be convicted."

Awartani said, "Any attempt like this is horrific, be it here or in Palestine."

"This is why when you send your wishes and light your candles. Your mind should not just be focused on me as an individual, but rather as a proud member of a people being oppressed."

Beshara Doumani, the Mahmoud Darwish professor of Palestinian studies at Brown, read the statement. He and another school employee visited Awartani yesterday in Burlington.

Two of Awartani's friends — a high school classmate and his roommate — also spoke at the vigil.

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Ukrainians are shocked and horrified by what is happening to them. Sirens are heard in Kiev, and people are fleeing the city. Images appeared with huge columns of cars blocking the highway at the exit from Kiev. Meanwhile, others have taken refuge in subway stations or are kneeling on the streets.

Several people from Kiev rushed to the underground subway stations to take shelter. Others boarded buses to leave the city.

On social media, people send messages saying that they are panicking and that they are trying to get to anti-aircraft shelters and basements as soon as possible. Reporters filmed groups of people praying on the street, kneeling.

In addition to panic, Ukrainians are creating videos with the slogan "My Home. My Ukraine." These videos are profound and painful. People want peace and a future for their children. Ukraine is truly a beautiful country, with many places where nature fills your soul, and the picturesque views are breathtaking. A country full of traditions, color and greenery. Ukraine is the home of its nation, and at this time, many will lose their homes as a result of the bombings, people are forced to leave their homes, to flee their country.

My home. My Ukraine

The first bombings took place just after 5 o'clock in the morning.

Residents of Kiev were told to stay in their homes and prepare a bag with the essentials in case they should leave urgently.

In the city, red arrows have been drawn on several walls indicating the locations of the nearest anti-aircraft shelters. These insignia have existed since 2014, and now they have been marked once again with intense color, so that they can be easily observed.

At 6:18 a.m., two hours before the start of the school day, the parents of the children attending the Ivan Franko school in central Kiev received a message to keep the children at home and that the classes would be held online.

Residents of Ukraine's capital, Kiev, woke up to explosions and sirens on Thursday morning, and the city panicked: many tried to seek shelter, while others fled the town. Even after weeks of warnings from Ukrainian and Western leaders that a Russian attack was imminent, some Kiev residents were caught unprepared.

Many people rushed to anti-aircraft shelters or subway stations to take shelter. Others sat in long queues at banks, supermarkets, or gas stations. Some fled west by car.

"I didn't expect that. I didn't think anything would happen until this morning," said Nikita, a 34-year-old marketer as she waited in a long line at a bottle stack. of water in the shopping cart. "I am a healthy adult. I packed my bags, bought food and stayed home with my family," he said.

Other residents were determined to move to western Ukraine, which they considered relatively safe. During the morning, traffic was blocked on the four lanes of the main road to the western city of Lviv. The cars were parked side by side for tens of kilometers, according to witnesses quoted by Reuters.

Among those who tried to leave is 31-year-old Alex Svitelskyi, who says he wants to take his parents out of town. He is also worried about his sister: "I want her away from here."

The effects of the attacks were immediately apparent in Ukraine. In addition to the affected buildings in various cities, in the capital Kiev people did their best to leave. Queues formed at ATMs, supermarkets and gas stations, while thousands of cars crowded out of town. An extremely affected area was also near Kharkov, in the city of Chiuhiv, where a blockade was devastated by a Russian rocket.

"Fighting is taking place in almost the entire territory of Ukraine. So far, 203 Russian military attacks have been reported," the Ukrainian National Police said.

Armored columns are now heading for Kiev after fighting took place at the Hostomel air base on the northern outskirts of the Ukrainian capital.

Ukrainian citizens have begun withdrawing money from ATMs and stockpiling supplies. According to their testimonies, the internet networks have already started to be affected.

People explained that the authorities asked the people not to leave the houses and, if necessary, to take shelter in the basements. "There was a real panic and people started to leave Kiev. They bought products, withdrew money from ATMs. City officials are trying to stop the panic by asking people to stay indoors and, if necessary, go down to basements or bomb shelters. The sirens sounded in the streets several times. There are constant explosions and fires. "

Ukrainian citizens have begun withdrawing money from ATMs and stockpiling supplies. According to their testimonies, the internet networks have already started to be affected.


People explained that the authorities asked the people not to leave the houses and, if necessary, to take shelter in the basements. "There was a real panic and people started to leave Kiev. They bought products, withdrew money from ATMs. City officials are trying to stop the panic by asking people to stay indoors and, if necessary, go down to basements or bomb shelters. The sirens sounded in the streets several times. There are constant explosions and fires. "

In Lutsk, the fire station was damaged, no one was injured. One person was injured when the airport was bombed. An "air raid" was reported in Poltava. Fire in the military depots in the village. Raduşinţi (Poltava region). At Khmelnitsky, a shell hit the runway of a military airfield. In Nijin, six people woke up under the rubble of the airfield, they are working for their release.

Tens of thousands of families in Ukraine are simultaneously experiencing the drama of war and partition, after Kiev authorities enacted martial law and banned men who could defend their country from crossing borders. They remained to face the enemy, but they sent their families across the border, with tears in their eyes and broken hearts. In Romania and Moldova, thousands of women have been crossing the border for almost 24 hours, alone or in groups, accompanied by elderly parents or babies and children.

 

The drama of a Ukrainian who embraces his daughter only a few years old, whom he sends away from the war with only his mother, has been repeated in Ukraine hundreds and thousands of times. Adult men capable of fighting can no longer leave the country after the president introduced martial law.

 

Nazar is 13 years old. His mother fled Ukraine alone with him and his younger sister. The father remained in the country. Here is a conversation between him and a reporter.

 

 

Reporter: What did he tell you before you left?

Nazar, Ukrainian refugee: He told me everything would be fine. And to send him pictures.

 

Nazar spoke with a knot in his throat about the separation of the family.

 

Reporter: What is your father doing now?

Nazar: He's a medical technician, but now he's helping the military if they're injured.

Reporter: Was he in the Army before?

Nazar: No, he wasn't in the military before.

 

He hopes to stay with his mother and sister in Poland, where they will stay with a family of friends, only temporarily.

 

Reporter: What would you have done instead of your father?

Nazar: I think I would have done the same.

Reporter: Would you have fought?

Nazar: Yes!

 

A young Ukrainian woman took her two-year-old daughter and came on foot to Moldova. She managed to get in on Thursday night. This morning, people with dramatic stories continued to cross the border. A woman left Ukraine with only her one-year-old daughter and mother. They crossed the border on foot. My brother and father stayed in the country. With tears in his eyes, he tells how he lived his last night in his homeland.

 

 

Reporter: Are you afraid for them?

Woman from Ukraine: Yes, sure! I was scared, there were bombings near us last night. I was scared.

 

Hundreds of women alone or accompanied only by children, many brought in arms, in carts or on foot, if they are older than a few years, have crossed the border into Romania and Moldova.

 

 

Reporter: Are you alone?

Woman from Ukraine: My father went to fight for the country. My son is in Europe, in Germany. I'm alone now.

Reporter: Was it hard to leave your husband there?

Woman from Ukraine: Yes, very difficult.

Reporter: You have tears in your eyes.

Woman from Ukraine: Yes, I'm crying. I hope everything will be fine. We ask you to help us, to pray for Ukraine.