The stories told to Svitlana Popova’s 15-year-old daughter, Alina, while she lived under Russian occupation in Ukraine’s southern Kherson province, were designed to terrify her. Yvgenia, the pro-Russian mother of Alina’s best friend, spun her a web of lies. Alina and her family, the woman insisted, had taken food aid from the Russian-imposed administration. When the fast-approaching Ukrainian forces came into Kherson, she added, they would hurt anyone who had been in contact with the Russians.
Alina told the Guardian that she had felt Yvgenia was her friend. When the woman suggested fleeing to Russia for “safety”, the scared girl agreed.
