Since the start of the war, tens of thousands of Muslims have either picked up arms or assisted in the war efforts in other ways. While most of these Muslims are of course Ukrainian, many are from Caucasus, and Chechnya in particular. Together with the Ukrainians, they are not only defending Ukraine and its values, but fighting a common enemy: Russia. FRANCE 24’s Raid Abu Zaideh and Anaïs Guérard report from the front line.
Although Ukraine is mainly Christian, it is also home to around half a million Muslims, accounting for around 1 percent of the population. The majority of them are Crimean Tartars, or Crimeans.
