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The summer of 2022 in Zaporizhia is coming to an end; War has been raging in Ukraine for about six months. 19-year-old Diana Haidukova looks for distraction on a dating app – and finds Danylo Kowalenko (22). Diana writes to him: they meet for a walk and stay for dinner.
It was love at first sight, the next few months flew by. The couple became inseparable and did everything together. “They are absorbed in each other,” Diana’s best friend Lisa (20) told the Washington Post. “I have never seen Diana so in love.”
Wedding just four months after the first date
Diana soon moved from her family in the countryside to Danylo in the city. It was there that Danylo proposed to her one evening in the basement bunker. They secretly married at the registry office – just four weeks after their first date.
Diana later posted a photo on Instagram of herself snuggled in Danylo’s arms. “I married this funny clown quickly and worry-free,” she wrote. In a video, she can be seen kissing him and singing: “I got married at 19, despite the war!”
The couple tried to spend as much time together as possible. “They knew a rocket could hit at any moment. The explosions always happened near our house,” said Danylo’s friend Artem, who lived near the couple. “Somehow they were prepared for what came next,” he added.
The bomb hits
On the night of October 16, Russia launched another deadly attack on the couple’s hometown. After several rockets hit near their house, they decided to enter the shelter. Diana turned around to grab something else. Danylo ran after her. Both never returned.
A bomb hit the house, destroying three floors, including the couple’s bedroom. All attempts to resuscitate Danylo failed and Diana’s body was not recovered from the rubble until the next day.
The couple’s friends couldn’t believe the news. “I ran to her apartment. I saw his father and he told me that Danylo was dead,” said Artem. “Every time I leave my house, I have to look at the hole in his building.” Liza also often couldn’t stop crying: “I feel like a walking corpse.” Instead of the first wedding anniversary, friends and family now have to plan the couple’s funeral. They want to mix the loved ones’ ashes and scatter them in special places in Zaporizhia.
The example is emblematic of the loss that countless Ukrainians are currently suffering, writes the Washington Post. Every day, innocent lives are wiped out and dreams ended by Russian attacks. War trauma becomes normal, especially among young residents – and the war continues. (jl)
Source: Blick
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
