Ukraine war: School frozen in time after it was used as bomb shelter during nine months of fear
The date scribbled on the blackboard of a classroom in southern Ukraine still reads 23 February.
It was the day before Russia launched its invasion – and the last time children in the village of Snihurivka were able to study at their school.
Lines of desks and chairs stand empty – as if frozen in time.
An abandoned pair of little shoes, a drawstring bag of clothes and the odd pen offer the only hint of the routine, school-time bustle that once filled this building.
In its place for the past nine months has been only fear as the building became an impromptu bomb shelter for local residents.
Only now are staff finally able to consider reopening to students after a major Ukrainian counter-offensive recaptured the village, in the region of Mykolaiv, from Russian hands just over a fortnight ago, the deputy headmistress said.
“To be honest, when liberation happened, we were crying,” said Iryna Zaveriuhina, 52. “We could all breathe more easily.”
She showed Sky News how airstrikes from the early days of the war had shattered many of the school’s windows.
But the building includes a sprawling basement, which offered a vital place of sanctuary for around 400 adults and children to escape the threat from rockets and missiles.
The school has not been used since the day before the Russian invasion
Some came just at night. Others stayed down in the basement all the time – from the beginning of the invasion until after the Ukrainian forces arrived. The last two guests had only just dared to venture home when Sky News visited the school on Thursday.
A row of children’s beds, one with a soft toy, can still be seen in the darkness lining the wall of one large, underground room. There is also a dirty bowl on the side.
There are no lights so the only way to see was with a torch light from our mobile phones.
Teachers are hoping to reopen the school
Ms Zaveriuhina spent the first few weeks of the war helping out in the basement every other day from 8pm to 8am until the village fell under Russian control on 19 March.
She stopped visiting at that point but many others still used it.
Asked how she felt about returning to the shelter, she said: “To be honest I don’t know how to describe my feelings. I wish people never have to live again in basements. Some families were really scared and children as well. It was a nightmare.”
The school basement was used as a shelter
The teacher described how, despite the hardship of Russian occupation, residents remained defiant, with people often daring to raise the Ukrainian flag overnight on a flagpole outside the school – only for the Russians to bring it down the following day.
With the Russian forces now gone, the focus for teachers is to repair the damage the school suffered, regain electricity and work to enable children to return to class.
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The school normally holds around 350 pupils, aged six to 17, though Ms Zaveriuhina believes fewer than 50 of them are still in the village, as many families fled.
She is hopeful they will return. In the meantime, teachers have distributed a lot of books to parents to enable them to teach their children at home. A lack of internet and power means remote, online learning is particularly challenging.
“As soon as everyone is back here, everything will be okay. We are hoping for that,” she said.
Lidiia Varaksa’s kitchen was destroyed by a munition
Down the road from the school is a different example of resilience and survival.
At 82, Lidiia Varaksa was knocked off her feet and hit her head on a table when a munition exploded outside her small bungalow a few weeks ago, shattering an outdoor kitchen and punching pock marks into walls and pipes.
“This was my fridge,” she said, holding up the remains of a battered door. “Everything was hit.”
She lives alone, except for a dog, and has not heard from her two sons.
Lidiia Varaksa has not heard from her two sons
Her hair wrapped in a mustard-yellow headscarf, she said she did not know how she would be able to afford the repair work for her home and was worried about the approaching winter, as there was still no power for heat and light.
“How do I feel? I’m walking around and crying. There is nothing else I can do,” she said.
But she is not giving up.
“When the Ukrainian forces came here, people started to come out from their cellars.
“In my opinion, if I could just continue living like this until the end of my days, it can just be like that.
“Collapsed, destroyed [home], I don’t mind. I want to live peacefully until the end of my days.”
World
Donald Trump tells Volodymyr Zelenskyy ‘you’re gambling with World War Three’ in fiery Oval Office meeting
Donald Trump and JD Vance held a heated meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy in front of the media – which saw the US president tell his Ukrainian counterpart he is “gambling with World War Three”.
Mr Zelenskyy travelled to the US as he attempted to secure a ceasefire agreement with Russia and a possible mineral deal with the United States.
But his visit to the White House ended prematurely – with the signing of an agreement and a joint press conference with Mr Trump called off following their Oval Office clash.
Ukraine latest: Russian official responds to White House meeting
As the pair met with US vice president JD Vance joining them, tensions rose and a shouting match unfolded – all while cameras rolled and representatives from the media looked on.
The last 10 minutes of the almost 45-minute meeting descended into a tense back-and-forth, which began with Mr Vance telling Mr Zelenksyy: “I think it’s disrespectful for you to come to the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media.
“You should be thanking the President [Trump] for trying to bring an end to this conflict.”
Members of the press were gathered in the Oval Office as the tense exchange unfolded. Pic: AP
Tensions rose after JD Vance called Mr Zelenskyy ‘disrespectful’. Pic: Reuters
As the Ukrainian president tried to object, Mr Trump raised his voice and told him: “You’re gambling with the lives of millions of people.
“You’re gambling with World War Three, and what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country, this country that’s backed you far more than a lot of people say they should have.”
“You’re right now not in a very good position,” he continued. “You don’t have the cards right now with us, you start having problems right now.”
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What happened when Trump met Zelenskyy?
‘This will be great television,’ says Trump
At one point, Mr Vance blasted Mr Zelenskyy for airing “disagreements” in front of the press, but the US president remarked: “I think it’s good for the American people to see what’s going on.”
“You’re not acting at all thankful,” he said. “This is going to be great television.”
Defending himself and his country, the Ukrainian president openly challenged Mr Trump on his softer approach to Vladimir Putin and urged him to make “no compromises with a killer”.
This fiery spectacle was hard to witness
The fiery and very public bust-up between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy is a disaster for Ukraine and its European allies, and a triumph for Russia.
The spectacle of the US president berating his Ukrainian counterpart and telling him he is gambling with World War Three – played out on television from the Oval Office – was hard to witness.
Zelenskyy, looking increasingly uncomfortable, decided to fight back. He likely felt he had little choice but to defend himself and his war-torn country.
But this act of defiance drew even more condemnation from Trump as well as from JD Vance, who also started attacking the Ukrainian leader.
It is hard to imagine a greater contrast from the chummy scenes between Sir Keir Starmer and Trump and the scolding language used by the American president against Zelenskyy, at times addressing him as though he were a naughty schoolboy.
Ukraine’s president, his arms crossed, tried his best to speak up, but he was clearly fighting a losing battle. The extraordinary breakdown is far more serious than just a made-for-television drama.
American support for Ukraine is critical if Kyiv is to withstand Russia’s war. The UK, France and Ukraine’s other European allies have been working overtime to try to keep Trump on their side.
The US president has vowed to end the war and has started talks with Vladimir Putin. The two presidents also plan to meet. That alone was hard for Ukraine to witness.
But the Ukrainian side has attempted to work with Washington rather than against it, including by being willing to part with profits from its minerals and other natural resources in return for locking Trump into a long-term partnership with Ukraine.
That all looks to be shattered – or at best is in serious jeopardy.
If Trump, in anger, withdraws all his military support to Ukraine, Kyiv’s ability to withstand Russia’s military will be seriously diminished.
The Europeans lack the capability to fill the void. The only person who wins in this scenario is Vladimir Putin.
Posting on his Truth Social platform shortly after the clash, Mr Trump described the meeting as “very meaningful” and said: “Much was learned that could never be understood without conversation under such fire and pressure.
“It’s amazing what comes out through emotion, and I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations.”
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Volodymyr Zelenskyy leaving the White House early. Pic: AP
He continued: “I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”
Zelenskyy posts on X after early exit
Mr Trump and Mr Zelenskyy had been due to have lunch with their delegations in the White House’s cabinet room after the meeting – but untouched salad plates and other items were seen being packed up as the meal was hastily called off.
Having left the White House early, Mr Zelenskyy said in a post on X: “Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit.
“Thank you @POTUS, Congress, and the American people. Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.”
It feels like “the draft” has come six weeks early – the annual selection meeting in American football.
For three or four days, teams in the NFL attempt to woo players with the most lucrative contracts.
In a classic Emmanuel Macron manoeuvre, the French president deployed flattery in the Oval Office.
Three days later, Sir Keir Starmer the charmer upped the game, whipping out a letter from the King.
In their determination to entice the key player back onto Europe’s side, their tactical game was top-notch.
But President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s arrival at the White House is the moment of truth for their charm offensive.
The Ukrainian leader has stressed the need for security guarantees before signing any agreement.
President Donald Trump seems to be suggesting that a deal on rare earth minerals provides such security.
“Digging our hearts out,” as he put it, in an economic partnership, would certainly be ground-breaking diplomacy.
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‘What a beautiful accent’
This week’s flurry in Washington reflects Europe’s concern about Trump’s push to end the war.
Ten days ago, his apparent concessions to Russia sounded alarm bells across the Atlantic.
But his meetings with Macron and Starmer were more amicable than France and the UK dared hope.
Both fact-checked him in real time when he claimed European aid for Ukraine had been given as a loan.
Read more:
As it happened: Trump-Starmer visit
Starmer contradicts Vance over free speech claim
Read some of Trump’s letter from the King
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An ‘intense session’ but ‘pretty good outing’
But rather than retaliate, he appeared to have heard their concerns about his U-turn towards Moscow.
Asked by one journalist if he still thought Zelenskyy was a “dictator”, he replied: “Did I really say that?”
Don’t underestimate that joke.
It is the closest Donald J Trump would ever come to a climb-down.
The publication of the detail is a pivotal moment in assessing which team he has opted to play for.
World
FBI most wanted drug lord among 29 cartel figures sent from Mexico to US as Trump turns up pressure on organisations
Mexico has sent 29 drug cartel figures, including a most wanted drug lord, to the US as the Trump administration cranks up the pressure on the crime groups.
The early days of the new US president’s second term were marked by him triggering trade wars with his nearest allies, where he threatened to hike tariffs with Mexico, and Canada, insisting the country crack down on drug cartels, immigration and the production of fentanyl.
With the imposition of the 25% tariffs just days away, drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero, one of the FBI’s “10 most wanted fugitives”, was one of the individuals handed over in the unprecedented show of cooperation.
The FBI wanted poster for Rafael Caro Quintero. Pic: AP/FBI
It comes as top Mexican officials are in Washington ahead of Tuesday’s deadline.
Those sent to the US on Thursday were rounded up from prisons across Mexico and flown to eight US cities, according to the Mexican government.
Prosecutors from both countries said the prisoners sent to the US faced charges including drug trafficking and homicide.
“We will prosecute these criminals to the fullest extent of the law in honour of the brave law enforcement agents who have dedicated their careers – and in some cases, given their lives – to protect innocent people from the scourge of violent cartels,” US attorney general Pamela Bondi said in a statement.
‘Cartel kingpin’
Quintero was convicted of the torture and murder of US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) agent Enrique ‘Kiki’ Camarena in 1985.
The murder marked a low point in US-Mexico relations.
Quintero was described by the US attorney general as “a cartel kingpin who unleashed violence, destruction, and death across the United States and Mexico”.
After decades in jail, and atop the FBI’s most wanted list, he walked free in 2013 when a court overturned his 40-year sentence for killing Mr Camarena.
Rafael Caro Quintero. Pic: Reuters/FBI
Quintero, the former leader of the Guadalajara cartel, returned to drug trafficking and triggered bloody turf battles in the northern Mexico state of Sonora until he was arrested a second time in 2022.
The US sought his extradition shortly after, but the request remained stuck at Mexico’s foreign ministry for reasons unknown.
President Claudia Sheinbaum’s predecessor and political mentor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador severely curtailed Mexican cooperation with the DEA to protest undercover US operations in Mexico targeting senior political and military officials.
‘The Lord of The Skies’
Also sent to the US were cartel leaders, security chiefs from both factions of the Sinaloa cartel, cartel finance operatives and a man wanted in connection with the killing of a North Carolina sheriff’s deputy in 2022.
Vicente Carrillo Fuentes, a once leader of the Juarez drug cartel, based in the border city of Ciudad Juarez, across from El Paso, Texas, and brother of drug lord Amado Carrillo Fuentes, known as “The Lord of The Skies”, who died in a botched plastic surgery in 1997, was among those turned over to the US.
As were two leaders of the now defunct Los Zetas cartel, brothers Miguel and Omar Trevino Morales, who were known as Z-40 and Z-42.
The brothers have been accused of running the successor Northeast Cartel from prison.
Soldiers escort a man who authorities identified as Omar Trevino Morales, also known as Z-42. Pic: AP/Eduardo Verdugo
Miguel Angel Trevino Morales after his arrest. Pic: AP/Mexico’s Interior Ministry
Vicente Carrillo Fuentes, the purported leader of the Juarez cartel, pictured after his arrest in 2014. Pic: AP
Trump-Mexico relations
The removal of the cartel figures coincided with a visit to Washington by Mexico’s foreign affairs secretary Juan Ramon de la Fuente and other top officials, who met with their US counterparts.
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Mr Trump has made clear his desire to crack down on drug cartels and has pressured Mexico to work with him.
The acting head of the DEA, Derek Maltz, was said to have provided the White House with a list of nearly 30 targets in Mexico wanted in the US on criminal charges and Quintero was top of the list.
It was also said that Ms Sheinbaum’s government, in a rush to seek favour with the Trump administration, bypassed the usual formalities of the countries’ shared extradition treaty in this incident.
This means it could potentially allow US prosecutors to try Quintero for Mr Camarena’s murder – something not contemplated in the existing extradition request to face separate drug trafficking charges in a Brooklyn federal court.
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