- Published
For much of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Daria was not afraid of the shelling.
asserted
Daria → publish → shelling
Even on nights of heavy bombardment, the 27-year-old could sleep through the explosions in her apartment in Kyiv.
uncertain
old → sleep → Kyiv
Like many Ukrainians, she relied on the "two-wall rule": staying safe by keeping two walls between herself and the outside world.
asserted
she → rely → herself
But this year that has changed.
asserted
that → change → ?
In recent months, Russia has scaled up the intensity and frequency of its attacks against the Ukrainian capital.
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Russia → scale → capital
In the first 10 days of July alone, the Russians launched dozens of ballistic missiles in three major attacks, killing nearly 60 civilians, according to official figures.
uncertain
Russians → launch → figures
Similar large scale attacks took place in August and September.
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attacks → take → August
A BBC Verify analysis of government figures found Kyiv is now suffering more daily air raid alerts than at any time since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.
asserted
Kyiv → find → 2022
It was during an attack one night in May that Daria realised she no longer felt safe in her home.
uncertain
she → realise → home
She and her boyfriend were in the corridor of their ninth-floor apartment, watching a boxing match, as explosions went off around them, the blast waves causing the windows to repeatedly slam open and shut.
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windows → watch → them
When the fight ended, "there was no longer anything to distract me," Daria says.
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Daria → end → me
"That's when I realised I was really scared."
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I → realise → ?
At first, she thought she would start using a nearby bomb shelter during attacks.
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she → think → attacks
But in June, when a young mother was killed running to a shelter in Kyiv, Daria decided she needed to leave the city altogether.
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she → kill → city
She returned to her family's country house, 30km (18.6 miles) away in Romankiv, and now spends a total of four hours a day commuting to and from Kyiv, where she works in the defence sector.
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she → return → sector
Residents in Kyiv who say they had got used to Russia's missile and drone strikes have told the BBC World Service the renewed intensity of the attacks is making them rethink how they live their lives.
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they → say → lives
Previously, Ukraine's air-defence network and military intelligence gave residents a degree of predictability.
asserted
network → give → predictability
Large-scale attacks could often be detected in advance, allowing people to spend the night in shelters, leave the city or take other precautions.
uncertain
people → detect → precautions
But since the summer, Russia has changed its tactics.
asserted
Russia → change → tactics
It has relied less on aircraft, whose movements can be spotted ahead of time, and more on ballistic missiles that travel at tremendous speed and provide little warning.
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that → rely → warning
Air-raid alerts sometimes begin only moments before impact, or even simultaneously with the first explosions.
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alerts → begin → explosions
Daria can see her nearest shelter from the window of her apartment, which she still rents.
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she → see → which
Even so, it takes around 10 minutes to reach it.
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it → take → it
During a ballistic attack, she might have just four minutes' warning or less, she says.
uncertain
she → have → warning
She decided to leave Kyiv in June after holidaying abroad this summer and seeing people living "normal" lives.
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people → decide → lives
Since then, she has only spent one night in Kyiv.
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she → spend → Kyiv
Yet, for many, leaving is not an option.
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leaving → leave → many
Sixty-two-year-old Olha Vlasova lives on the seventh floor of a high-rise apartment block with her 98-year-old mother, Nadia Tsybina.
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Vlasova → live → mother
Despite her age, Nadia remains intensely engaged with the world.
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Nadia → remain → world
From her bed she follows events in Ukraine and abroad, discussing everything from US President Donald Trump's policies, to anti-corruption protests in Kyiv, and the Epstein files.
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she → follow → Kyiv
She's also learned that she can often tell, simply by listening, whether a Russian missile or drone has been intercepted or has reached its target.
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missile → learn → target
This summer, she says she has heard fewer interceptions.
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she → say → interceptions
"It's upsetting when there's nothing to shoot them down with," Nadia says.
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Nadia → be → them
"I can hear them firing with whatever they've got, rifles, machine guns."
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they → hear → rifles
With Nadia confined to her bed, she and Olha cannot go to a shelter, however serious an attack is.
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attack → confine → shelter
Instead, as soon as an air-raid siren sounds, Olha covers her mother with a blanket, pushes a mattress into their window frame, and then hides in a wardrobe which puts two walls between her and outside.
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which → sound → her
Nadia places a pillow over her head to protect her face from flying glass.
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Nadia → place → glass
Once in her wardrobe, Olha will often stay awake watching the news all night.
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Olha → stay → news
"They come in, they bomb us," Nadia says.
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Nadia → come → us
"You haven't even had time to fall asleep, and there's another alert.
asserted
You → have → time
…and 35 more, not listed.
The Aporia
