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Photos: Six months of Russia’s war in Ukraine

From scenes of devastation to images of broken-hearted victims, Russia’s brutal invasion has been well documented.

A woman holds her baby inside a bus as they leave Kyiv, Ukraine,
A woman holds her baby inside a bus as they leave Kyiv, on February 24, 2022. Russia launched a wide-ranging attack on Ukraine, hitting cities and bases with air strikes or shelling, as civilians piled into trains and cars to flee. [Emilio Morenatti/AP Photo]
Published On 24 Aug 2022

Six months ago, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine on a “special military operation” – a mass invasion on a scale unseen in Europe since World War II.

The United Nations says 5,587 civilians have been killed and 7,890 wounded in the war that began on February 24, although the estimate is likely an undercount. The UN children’s agency said on Monday that at least 972 Ukrainian children have been killed or injured in half a year, but again, UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said “we believe the number to be much higher”.

As Russia pounded Ukrainian cities, millions took flight in the fastest-growing refugee crisis in generations. More than 6.6 million refugees have been recorded across Europe, most in neighbouring countries, which opened their arms.

The war is now focused mainly on eastern and southern Ukraine, where Kyiv has promised to recapture the biggest swath of seized territory.

Natali Sevriukova reacts next to her house following a rocket attack the city of Kyiv, Ukraine
Natali Sevriukova reacts beside her house following a rocket attack on the city of Kyiv, Ukraine, on Friday, February 25, 2022. [Emilio Morenatti/AP Photo]
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A member of the Ukrainian Emergency Service looks at the City Hall building in the central square following shelling in Kharkiv, Ukraine
A member of the Ukrainian emergency services looks at the City Hall building in a central square following shelling in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on Tuesday, March 1, 2022. Russian strikes pounded the square in Ukraine’s second-largest city and other civilian sites in what the country’s president condemned as a blatant campaign of 'terror' by Moscow. [Pavel Dorogoy/AP Photo]
An elderly lady is assisted to cross the Irpin river on an improvised path under a bridge, that was destroyed by Ukrainian troops designed to slow any Russian military advance, while fleeing the town of Irpin, Ukraine
An elderly woman is assisted to cross the Irpin river on an improvised path under a bridge that was destroyed by Ukrainian troops to slow any Russian military advance, while fleeing the town of Irpin, Ukraine, on March 5, 2022. What looked like a breakthrough ceasefire to evacuate residents from two cities in Ukraine quickly fell apart as Ukrainian officials said shelling had halted the work to remove civilians, hours after Russia announced the deal. [Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo]
A woman holding a child cries after fleeing from the Ukraine and arriving at the border crossing in Medyka, Poland
A woman holding a child cries after fleeing Ukraine and arriving at the border crossing in Medyka, Poland, on March 7, 2022. [Visar Kryeziu/AP Photo]
Ukrainians cross an improvised path under a destroyed bridge while fleeing Irpin, in the outskirts of Kyiv
Ukrainians cross an improvised path under a destroyed bridge while fleeing Irpin, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, on March 8, 2022. [Felipe Dana/AP Photo]
Ukrainian emergency employees and volunteers carry an injured pregnant woman from the maternity hospital that was damaged by shelling in Mariupol, Ukraine
Ukrainian emergency employees and volunteers carry an injured pregnant woman from a maternity hospital that was damaged by shelling in Mariupol, Ukraine, on March 9, 2022. [Evgeniy Maloletka/AP Photo]
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An explosion is seen in an apartment building after Russian's army tank fires in Mariupol, Ukraine
An explosion is seen in an apartment building after a Russian army tank fires in Mariupol, Ukraine, on March 11, 2022. [Evgeniy Maloletka/AP Photo]
Anti- tank barricades are placed on a street as preparation for a possible Russian offensive, in Odesa, Ukraine
Anti-tank barricades are placed on a street as preparation for a possible Russian offensive in Odesa, Ukraine, on March 24, 2022. [Petros Giannakouris/AP Photo]
A man rides his bike past flames and smoke rising from a fire following a Russian attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine
A man rides his bike past flames and smoke rising from a fire following a Russian attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on March 25, 2022. [Felipe Dana/AP Photo]
Soldiers walk amid destroyed Russian tanks in Bucha, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine
Soldiers walk amid destroyed Russian tanks in Bucha, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, on April 3, 2022. Ukrainian troops found brutalised bodies and widespread destruction in the suburbs of Kyiv, sparking calls for a war crimes investigation and sanctions against Russia. [Rodrigo Abd/AP Photo]
A resident looks for belongings in an apartment building destroyed during fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces in Borodyanka, Ukraine
A resident looks for belongings in an apartment building destroyed during fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces in Borodyanka, Ukraine, on April 5, 2022. [Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo]
A man walks past a storage place for burned armed vehicles and cars, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine
A man walks past a storage place for burned armed vehicles and cars, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, on April 11, 2022. [Evgeniy Maloletka/AP Photo]
Three dug graves are ready for the next funerals at the cemetery in Irpin, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine
Three dug graves are ready for the next funerals at the cemetery in Irpin, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, on April 19, 2022. [Emilio Morenatti/AP Photo]
Destroyed houses are photographed in Irpin, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine
Destroyed houses are photographed in Irpin, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, on April 30, 2022. [Emilio Morenatti/AP Photo]
Vehicles are on fire at an oil depot after missiles struck the facility in an area controlled by Russian-backed separatist forces in Makiivka, 15 km (94 miles) east of Donetsk
Vehicles burn at an oil depot after missiles struck the facility in an area controlled by Russian-backed separatist forces in Makiivka, 15km (94 miles) east of Donetsk, eastern Ukraine on May 4, 2022. [AP Photo]
Cars pass by destroyed Russian tanks in a recent battle against Ukrainians in the village of Dmytrivka, close to Kyiv, Ukraine
Cars pass by destroyed Russian tanks in a recent battle against Ukrainians in the village of Dmytrivka, close to Kyiv, Ukraine on May 23, 2022. [Efrem Lukatsky/AP Photo]
Nila Zelinska holds a doll belonging to her granddaughter, she was able to find in her destroyed house in Potashnya outskirts Kyiv, Ukraine
Nila Zelinska holds a doll belonging to her granddaughter that she found in her destroyed house in Potashnya, in the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukraine, on May 31, 2022. Zelinska just returned to her home town after escaping war to discover she is homeless. [Natacha Pisarenko/AP Photo]
Local resident Tetyana points at her house heavily damaged by the Russian shelling in Bakhmut, Donetsk region, Ukraine
Local resident Tetyana points at her house heavily damaged by the Russian shelling in Bakhmut, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on June 24, 2022.[Efrem Lukatsky/AP Photo]
Ukrainians visit an avenue, where destroyed Russian military vehicles have been displayed in Kyiv, Ukraine
Ukrainians visit an avenue, where destroyed Russian military vehicles have been displayed in Kyiv, Ukraine, on August 20, 2022. Drawing the attention of large numbers of people in downtown Kyiv, a large column of burned out and captured Russian tanks and infantry carriers were displayed on the central Khreshchatyk boulevard. [Andrew Kravchenko/AP Photo]