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Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
World
Nils Adler

An unexpected friendship: The gravediggers of Bucha

Vlad Minchenko, left, Artem Myhaylov and Sergiy Matuk, right, met while putting out a fire in Bucha during the Russian occupation of their city and now work together as gravediggers [Nils Adler/Al Jazeera]

Bucha, Ukraine – Vlad Minchenko, a stocky, straight-talking 44-year-old tattoo artist turned gravedigger, knows a thing or two about being under pressure.

As he shovels dry, dusty earth in the gentle light of dusk, he recounts tales of the violent interrogations, heavy shelling and wanton destruction he survived during more than a month under Russian occupation.

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