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FATIGUE, DESPAIR AND anger are prevalent in eastern Ukraine after five months of Russia’s agression.
Volunteer humanitarian aid worker Oleksiy Yukov called it “a war without mercy that has gone crazy”.
There has been fighting in the vast industrial area of Donbas — made up of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions — ever since 2014 when Russia-backed separatists took over part of the area.
But Moscow’s invasion on 24 February took the suffering to another level in a working-class area where there can be as much resentment against Ukrainian troops as against Russian ones.
Towns and villages along the frontline are hit by shelling and lives are cut short every day.
In the best cases, it is only homes that are destroyed — one-storey bungalows with well-tended gardens and vegetable plots turned into ruins.
Even further from the frontline in Kramatorsk, the main administrative centre for the Donetsk region, there is a constant threat of strikes.
Regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said over 600 civilians have been killed since the start of the invasion and more than 1,600 have been injured.
Russian forces, which have gradually captured almost the whole of the Lugansk region, are now trying to do the same in Donetsk.
And even though the frontline has not moved much in recent weeks, the ongoing war of attrition is inflicting havoc on local residents.
In the mining town of Toretsk, an exhausted soldier covered in grey dust after a bombing that killed six people — most likely brothers in arms, although he refuses to say — raises his fist in a victory sign but there is hopelessness in his eyes.
In Sloviansk, 54-year-old Andriy shows an enormous crater left by a shell in his mother-in-law’s garden and suddenly breaks down in tears.
A woman in Bakhmut on the frontline points at journalists, her face tense with anger, calling them “harbingers of misfortune” in the ruins of her pharmacy, destroyed by a missile she thinks was Ukrainian.
In a region where Soviet nostalgia is strong, there is sometimes fierce opposition to the government in Kyiv, accused of ignoring local needs for years.
Some locals are looking forward to the arrival of Russian troops while others are firmly opposed.
All of them have had enough.
Many inhabitants say they feel despair and incomprehension and feel abandoned.
In Chasiv Yar, which was hit by a strike on 10 July in which more than 45 people were killed, a 64-year-old woman gathered apricots in a scene of devastation in front of the destroyed building.
“There are still children under there. Their parents call them but nobody answers,” cried Lyudmila, a mother of six and grandmother of 12.
“Nobody needs us here. There is nothing anymore. The officials have left. We have to fend for ourselves to stay alive,” said Lyudmila, who like most people refused to give her full name.
Local officials are often absent in the aftermath of strikes while the military stay silent.
“The mayor of one village will be the first to flee, the mayor of another will be the first to collaborate with the Russians,” one local said.
The authorities have called for people to evacuate many times. But many have nowhere to go.
“I used to love my life. I had my work in a factory nearby. I had a house. Nothing special but we lived well,” sighed Tatyana.
The woman in her 50s spoke from the town of Pokrovsk in the aftermath of a strike that damaged a dozen homes in a single street.
Many civilians also complain, more or less openly, about Ukrainian soldiers setting up bases inside residential areas — in abandoned schools or homes.
In response to a question from AFP, a representative from the Ukrainian army in Donbas refused to comment on the allegations.
The issue is very sensitive since it is often a claim made by Moscow that strikes on those areas are necessary because of a military presence.
“I should not be talking to you. I could have problems,” said one woman in Toretsk, hours after a strike on a residential building.
“But I would like the military to leave, to go and fight elsewhere. There are children here and normal people,” she said.
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It’s hilarious how they posted “as you the fans we care etc etc”
When really they have just been caught out and the law has caught up with them.
What a bunch of dirt bags.
@Stephen McGrath: “All we want is you, the fan, to be able to buy tickets to events you love.” ;-)
@Stephen McGrath:
We listened, we heard you we ignored you and fleeced you
government introduce touting law
We listened, we heard you, we have to change by law…but we make out we did it because we love you…
@Stephen McGrath: Pure spin, like they had a choice
@Stephen McGrath: no in fairness Noel Rock gets the credit here
@Stephen McGrath: spot on Stephen. Ticketmaster are an absolute disgrace and have been facilitating ticket scalpers for years.
@Diarmaid Mac Aonghusa: I hear ya, and I hear…. all We want is for the fans of events we host to buy the tickets for the money we love ;)
@Seamus G: LOL, see what you did there,
Forgot to have his photo at the bottom though!!!
“weve listened….. and we heard there was a new law we were about to get caught on so were stopping doing this but don’t you worry we will find a new loophole in that law to screw you over with soon”
@Ian McNally: seatwave owned Ticketmaster owned by live nation owned by MCD who promote gigs, all controlled by Denis Desmond. Ticketmaster obviously hold majority of tickets and sell on seatwave at inflated price. This new site will no doubt charge a nice booking fee! Denis does nothing for the good of his health or that if the fans pocket!
About time
@Jack O’Meara: My heart bleeds for them really… their cartel has gotten one branch smaller. Poor chaps
It’s like someone who’s after robbing your house coming back to show you the receipt for all the items they stole off ya, and telling you they donated it to a charity shop cos they have seen the error of their ways……lads you couldn’t make that sorta excuse up
We’ve had a great fan to fan site since 2009 (I think) – toutless.ie
So thanks Ticketmaster , no need to facilitate fan to fan at all – we’re grand.
@Ciaran Forde: Yep. Sold 2 tickets to Imagine Dragons on Toutless last year and was happy to sell at face value. Don’t think we need or I’ll be using Ticketmasters version. Too little, too late by them.
Ah…so the new name for seatwave is “fan to fan”…aw that’s lovely….the ticket prices will be within the law but it’d be no surprise if there’s not a humongous admin fee to be paid to buyer/seller….load of twaddle
@Sinead foley: That’s probably what they meant when they said we strongly believe that the new legislation “will be both ineffective and will, in fact, be detrimental to Irish fans”. Why else would they say that?
@Sinead foley: Fan to fan + 20%
@Cathal: I think thats a launch promotion Cathal. 6 months in and its Fan to fan + 45%
“Fan to Fan”. I can imagine it more like “Fan from Legal Tout back to Tout”.
Very insulting PR to suggest the reason is because of listening to fans when a law has just been approved to make what they’re doing illegal
@Rochelle: It’s not insulting at all, it is completely idiotic. Whatever half wit who came out with this spin should be sacked.
“Submissions by Ticketmaster and Seatwave said the companies were unhappy.”
There’s a shocker – seeing as they were one and the same!
The clearest acknowledgment that it was in fact a ticket touting website to begin with! Shame on Ticketmaster.
Ticketmaster are the touts. 11 euro service charge for buying tickets online and printing them off at home…
Great news – but what will they come up with next, to get around the law?
Those profits have to be maintained!
Good riddance,
I wish there was a real alternative to Ticketmaster in Ireland for events, they have such a monopoly that they decided to scam fans in the first place with Seatwave, nobody is falling for their spin
Hypocrites
So delighted that Ticketmaster had to shut down this disgraceful ticket gouging. There needs to be more alternatives to Ticketmaster. It’s far to big of an monopoly
@Michael farrelly: There are a few, but mysteriously, acts choose to use these scammers.
Ticketmaster should be shut down immediately too for running this scam.
Two tickets for ireland vs New Zealand €1,402.20. What a pack of robbing w*****s. If there was another way I would never use ticketmaster.
@Glen Hanratty: It is extortionate but nobody is forcing you to attend that event.
@Glen Hanratty: did you actually buy them? I would just avoid, show principals and watch the game in a good pub instead
@Dave O’Hanlon: no I didn’t buy them. For that money I could go to a pub in New Zealand to watch the match.
@Sean: unfortunately the New Zealand game never went on general sale so I never got a chance to buy them. But to see them on sale for that kind of money is ridiculous.
Nice little earner for Ticketmaster, good it has been taken away from them. They’ll just have to content themselves with the €6+ booking fee on each ticket they sell. Thieves.
I presume they’ll be planning on bringing in the “dynamic pricing” they’ve been on about in the past where the quicker tickets are selling the dearer their own site sells them.
I wonder where they took that photo of a crowd with no phones in it??
@Rob Cahill: the 90′s
Can’t understand how those bastrds were able to get away with that for so long
Ha, ye didn’t have a choice, ye shower of robbers. Good enough for you.
These companies are so full of sh*te
Now we need the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission to insist that events over for over 5000 people should have more than one company distributing tickets.
A confession essentially
I placed a ban on buying any ticketmaster events, they have a monopoly, I am reduced to National concert hall and small pay at door gigs. For any big events buy the bands Dvd with wine and sit at home with friends.
Ticketmaster are a shower of gangsters. Have been for years. Worse than Ryanair for adding on additional costs that amount to no value for the customer.
Hayley can you not credit Noel Rock in the article for his efforts here?
Can someone enlighten me as to how it seems an Irish law has shut down this entire system? Am I reading it wrong and it’s only seatwave.ie that’s affected?
@David Clements: as per the article it is seat wave they are closing down.
@Susan O’flaherty: yeh but seatwave doesn’t just operate here. Are they shutting it down in it’s entirety because of an Irish law?
@David Clements: It’s not only Seatwave that’s affected – but Seatwave has been closed down officially – unlike others still out there. The likes of Ebay.ie or Done Deal, etc, also are still open for this overpricing racket to be tried continue besides other official business doing the same thing (as Seatwave/Ticketmaster did).
While I get it on principle I bought tickets before with viagogo that got me in to a gig that had sold out before I could get in …glad to see there’ll be a fairer resell website launched so there are options for those of us whove miss out.
Another example of the great rip of us sheep, we should get a big jar of government issued Vaseline. One of the most expensive in Europe for tickets, mortgages, broadband, mobile phones, alcohol (+ soft drinks), hotels, car insurance, petrol, electricity, gas, rent, private healthcare, cable TV and lots, lots more. Not sure how to counteract this except to give some time to the notion of voting for some sort of change in the next General Election and break the stranglehold of FFG. Otherwise it’s as you were.
Well done Noel Rock .Sorry to see the shinners are taking down your posters
Haley . Do you not know who pushed this legislation or is it that you just don’t want to say.
Now they need to get rid of viaGoGo.
Biggest scammers of all
Ticketmaster would turn your stomach. Reading their comments, anyone would think they are doing us all a favor by changing their ways for our good. They have finally been found out and now have to toe the line. however, as long as they keep charging more than one fee for multiple tickets, I will never purchase from them again.
thats a jike –ticket master are the biggest ‘touts’ of all ! most of the tickets available on these ‘secondary’ sites come direct from ticket master -everyone knows it — ticket master operates as a monopoly -especially here in ireland the ticket market should be opened up instead of one company having control over every gig ,show and concert in the country .
It’s kind of a shame though, I did make hundreds on seatwave
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