Chernihiv, Ukraine // 04.06.2022. Russian forces targeted private residences, apartment complexes and a hospital during their five-week siege on civilians in Chernihiv, Ukraine. On Monday, April 5, 2022 a route from Kyiv to Chernihiv reopened after Russian forces retreated from the city. While the nearby and recently besieged towns of Irpin and Bucha are fully under Ukrainian control, there is less certainty in Chernihiv as speculation suggests that the city will soon come under attack again.

“We lived on the third floor but are leaving now. What can we do? There is nothing left.” Russian forces targeted private residences, apartment complexes and a hospital during their five week siege on civilians in Chernihiv, Ukraine. More than half of the city’s 300,000 residents fled; the rest spent more than a month in basements, bomb shelters and bunkers.

The explosion broke both of Darlena’s legs. In the small room of a hospital in Chernihiv, Ukraine, Darlena’s mother, Natalia, sat near the bed of her 15- year-old daughter as silent tears filled her eyes. Darlena’s father, Alexander, stood near the small window, his face a mask of grief, pain and stress. Like so many of the children I’ve met, Darlena stared into some undefined distance, her physical body motionless and broken in front of me, her mind seemingly far away. The war in Ukraine, like so many atrocities before it, is one waged against the most innocent among us, those who’ve yet to see or experience what life might otherwise have offered them. As violence continues to escalate throughout Ukraine and as the world sees evidence of brutal war crimes, the United Nations warns that accurate civilian casualty statistics will not be known for months or years after the war ends.

Bagdan was with his father when a bomb exploded near their home. When we met him, the boy, age 13, had not yet been told that his father did not survive the explosion.

VI. Two women cover their mouths as they stand with a neighbor and survey damage to an apartment complex in Chernihiv, Ukraine on April 6, 2022. Vladyslav Atroshenko, the Mayor of Chernihiv, stated that more than 70% of the city has been destroyed.

The burned shell of a car sits amidst rubble in Chernihiv, Ukraine. During their five-week siege on the city, Russian forces destroyed more than 70% of the city, according to Mayor Vladyslav Atroshenko.

VIII. Ukrainian soldiers directed traffic around a damaged bridge en route to Chernihiv, Ukraine. It is unclear exactly how the damage was sustained but was one of numerous damaged bridges and roadways on the route from Kyiv to Chernihiv.

Ukrainian soldiers directed traffic across a makeshift bridge constructed to temporarily replace one that was destroyed on the route from Kyiv to Chernihiv.

Ukrainian tanks drive down the street of Chernihiv, Ukraine on April 6, 2022. Though Russian troops have retreated from the city, tensions remain high as residents begin to assess the damage. During a five-week Russian siege more than half of the city’s 300,000 residents fled; the rest spent more than a month in basements, bomb shelters and bunkers.

A Ukrainian soldier surveys a destroyed bridge on a road leading from the capital Kyiv to the besieged city of Chernihiv, Ukraine. Located less than 60 miles from the Russian border, more than 70% of the city of Chernihiv was destroyed during a five-week Russian siege.

A patch depicting the Ukrainian flag is visible on the uniform of a solider outside of the city of Chernihiv, Ukraine.

Landmines lines a roadway in the city of Chernihiv, Ukraine. Throughout the country Russian troops left an array of anti-tank and smaller landmines behind as they’ve retreated from cities including Chernihiv, Bucha, Kharkiv and others. The tedious process of mine removal has just begun; lost or missed mines can remain actives for years or even decades and thus pose a hazard long after a conflict has ended.

The Ukrainian flag blows in the wind atop a bunker at a checkpoint between Kyiv and Chernihiv on April 6, 2022.

A series of concrete roadblocks slow traffic on a road in Kyiv on April 6, 2022. Since Russia invaded on February 24, 2022, roadblocks and checkpoints have become common sights throughout most Ukrainian cities. The intention is to disrupt unauthorized or unwanted movement (civilian and military) and to check for valid identification.

A pile of tires create a makeshift obstacle on the roadway in Chernihiv, Ukraine. The tires can serve at least two purposes; they disrupt traffic and can also be lit on fire to obstruct aerial view of the city.

Sandbags create a long wall and barricade in the city of Kyiv. Since the war began on February 24, 2022, roadblocks and checkpoints have become common sights throughout most Ukrainian cities. The intention is to disrupt unauthorized or unwanted movement (civilian and military) and to check for valid identification.

A sign with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s face and a line through it is displayed at a Ukrainian military checkpoint outside of the city of Chernihiv, Ukraine on April 6, 2022.