I arrived at the Hilton in Kyiv close to midnight on Friday night, December 26, literally a few minutes before curfew. One feature of life in Kyiv is martial law, and a midnight curfew is in place. We cut it very close. My driver scrambled to get me into the hotel by midnight. We made it under the wire. My bags were in the hotel right at 12. The trip from the Polish border to Kyiv was uneventful, aside from meeting a close friend and his wife, a filmmaker and photographer, randomly in a gas station two hours outside Kyiv. There were no alarms or missile alerts the entire trip from the border to the city.
I was beyond excited. I had come to Ukraine to see friends. This trip was about showing solidarity, having my feet on the ground during the war — an expression of real love for Ukraine and Ukrainian friends. Since December 2022, I had not seen any of my friends in Ukraine.
When the October 7 attacks in Israel happened in 2023, I became consumed with advocacy for Israel and the hostages. My work in Ukraine was effectively halted. I stayed in touch with friends on Signal and WhatsApp, a poor alternative to being in person. Now I was finally coming back for a short weekend to Ukraine.
Surviving the night
At 12:45 AM, not even an hour after arriving at the Hilton, a friend called me to tell me that a massive Russian attack was anticipated. Translation — we were in for a long night. I showered and shaved quickly. I had arrived from Boston after a 24-hour journey, yet I was not even tired. I was elated to be back in Ukraine. At 1:21 AM, all hell broke loose. The first sirens blasted on my phone and outside. But I was astoundingly calm. This is a drill I know well, both in Ukraine and Israel.
When I checked into the Hilton, I asked for directions to the shelter, so I was prepared. There were two options: the subway across the street or the parking garage attached to the Hilton. I chose the garage. I texted my husband, Jack, and told him not to worry, in case he saw the news of an attack.
An hour after the attacks started, we were still in the shelter, and the alarms were not subsiding. This seemed unusual. I posted on social media that something seemed out of the ordinary — there was no sign of an all-clear. The air alarm app on my phone showed all of Ukraine “red,” meaning under alert. That effectively means that 30 million people were in shelters or taking cover in any manner possible. But we did not have more news.
I stayed in the shelter most of the night. The crowd was a random collection of visitors, diplomats and aid workers. At 4:30 AM, I went to my room. The alert was not over, but we also did not have any clear news. It was only around 7:30 AM when I was able to see the news reports. Kyiv was absorbing one of the largest waves of drones and missiles of the war. Russia had launched close to 500 drones and dozens of powerful missiles.
We had an all-clear only that Saturday evening, but in the afternoon, I went with friends to survey some of the damage to the apartment buildings. I helped shovel rubble with a group of Ukrainian men, while air raid alerts were still sounding. We moved our location a few times to avoid drones, which were circling Kyiv all day. By all accounts, for a war with many dozens of bad days, December 27 stood out because of the concentration of firepower at Kyiv.
The all clear came at 6:00 PM, close to 17 hours after the attacks started. That evening, several friends joined me for dinner at the Hilton. We talked about more than the war. It was great. I was meeting Valeriya, the new wife of my friend Roman, for the first time. My filmmaker friend Dima and his wife Bella, a gifted photographer, were with me. Very much like in Israel, we had a gap with no sirens, and we seized it for an evening of being together. It was like the war did not even exist for a few hours.
Why Ukraine matters
I am not Ukrainian. So why do I care about this country?
Ukraine is an extraordinary place. My mother-in-law, Ruth, was a child Holocaust survivor from Rivne, in Western Ukraine. I am a Russian speaker. I am also an attorney who has represented political opponents of Russian President Vladimir Putin. I see Russia as on par with Hamas, Iran and other states that support terror.
I had the opportunity to serve Ukraine in a volunteer capacity in 2022, during the first year of the war. I got to know the country very well. Ukraine is vast. The people are exceptional, defined by an adaptability and agility that also defines Israel and Israelis. I felt very much at home with Ukrainians from the first time I crossed the border. And I fell in love with Ukraine. The country has issues, but also exudes a self-awareness about its own imperfections. Ukraine is a place of extraordinary bravery, history and vastness. I have driven the country from the Polish border to the eastern front and have gotten to know Odessa and the south.
I also understand Ukrainians who fear that relinquishing land to Russia will only amplify the vulnerability of the entire country. This war has been brutal for Ukrainians. They deserve protection from the international community. Russia’s war in Ukraine is unlawful.
As an Israeli-American, I identify with the wish to be a democracy and to defeat more powerful, aggressive neighbors.
Russia continues to target civilian infrastructure with impunity, including but not limited to apartment buildings, schools and hospitals. This tactic has transformed the war from being one between two states to being one where Russia is at war with average, civilian Ukrainians.
In my opinion, Russia’s objective is to erase Ukraine. Ukrainian families across the country are vulnerable to attacks from drones and ballistic missiles. And Ukrainians are skeptical about Europe or the US really backing up any security guarantees with a peace deal.
As an American, Israeli and Jew, I stand with Ukraine.
This is the war of our generation. Ukrainians deserve good allies. That’s why I was there. And it is why I will go back.
[Kaitlyn Diana edited this piece.]
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.
The post Russia’s December 27 Attack on Kyiv: A Personal Account appeared first on Fair Observer.
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