Zelensky: Russians killed civilians for ‘pleasure’
The city of Lviv, in western Ukraine, is home to the Football Club Karpaty Lviv, a minor league soccer team. But as the Russian invasion continues, it’s now also home to Ukrainian refugees, fleeing violence and seeking safety.
Oleg Smaliychuk, the owner of the team, has opened the club’s offices as a resting place for hundreds of Ukrainian refugees.
“We left because of our children. We left our town because we were afraid of their psychological state. We have a war there, and we were very scared,” said Katia, a woman currently living at the soccer club with her sister-in-law and their four kids, via translator.
CNN’s Jake Tapper visited with Katia and her family, who fled Donetsk, heading west in hopes of avoiding the violence that plagues their city.
“I miss my grandmother and I would like to be back in my town. Because here everything looks very unfamiliar to me,” says 11-year-old Yegor, the eldest of the children.
Smaliychuk, the team’s owner, told CNN he’s been so impacted by the violence and terror, that he is contemplating a new career path.
“I want to change my profession. I bought a rifle. I want to become a sniper,” he told Tapper. “I believe after what we have seen, what happened in Bucha, the number has increased 10-fold of people like me who want to join.”
As he was interviewed by Tapper, Smaliychuk didn’t pause as he heard the air raid siren, an all-too-familiar reminder of the state of affairs in his country. Instead, he continued loading ammunition into his firearm, focused on his new calling.
“I definitely want to go where I can avenge our children,” he said.
Watch CNN’s reporting from the ground:
