View of destroyed Oskil from the air

After the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, the village was in the gray zone. In March 2022, it came under the control of the Russian occupiers.

On March 11, the occupiers shelled the Oskil psychoneurological boarding house with Grad MLRS. At that moment, the boarding house housed 30 staff members and 330 patients (mostly elderly and people with disabilities). Fortunately, people were in a shelter and were not injured.

Hennadii Zahoruiko, the head of the Oskil village military administration, told in an interview with “Slobidsky Krai” media that the occupiers were trying to make “a nice picture” for Putin. In particular, they appointed the local authorities from among the locals who agreed to cooperate and forced teachers to take their side and start the educational process in schools. Those who disagreed with the occupiers’ insistence were taken to torture chambers in Izium.

The village was liberated during the Slobozhanskyi counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which began in September 2022. Despite the continued Russian shelling, people are returning even to destroyed houses. Mine clearance work is underway, and water, gas, and electricity supplies are being restored.

For almost a year, the KHPG documenters have been filming the destroyed areas of the Kharkiv Region with ground cameras and drones. This selection includes photos of the village of Oskil after de-occupation.