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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A Ukrainian-Kurdish family attempting to seek shelter arrived in Erbil on Sunday, amid ongoing clashes and rising tension between Ukraine and Russia.
Residing in the Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv, the family of four flew to Ankara a day before Russian President Vladimir Putin announces the start of a military operation against Ukraine.
"We had a doctor’s appointment [in Ankara]. My wife and Aslan [son] were ill. We went there for the doctor’s appointment, we went to the hospital. The next day, the Russian attack started,” Rafaat Ismael told Rudaw’s Hadi Salimi on Sunday.
Ismael works in the agriculture section in Ukraine, importing vegetables and fruits to the Kurdistan Region.
Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an attack on Ukraine on Thursday, with explosions being heard across the country and raising fears of a major war.
The fighting in Ukraine has so far pushed more than half a million people across the country’s border into neighboring countries, reported the UN refugee agency.
Ismael and his wife, Angela Mawlood, and their children chose Erbil to seek shelter in until the situation in Ukraine deescalates.
"They [Ukrainians] take shelter in their basements every day because of bombings, tanks, and Russian troops. They have stocked up on some food, which was good. But the conflict is ongoing. They have some food for now, but how long will it last? We do not know," Mawlood, who is originally Kurdish but was born in Russia and later fled to Ukraine, said.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is the biggest conflict that Europe has seen since World War ll.
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