Doncaster candelit vigil for Ukraine to mark first anniversary of Russian invasion

This Friday marks a year since the brutal invasion which has seen thousands of civilians and military personnel killed and millions more forced to flee their homeland and across Europe to escape the bloodshed.

And Doncaster will remember those lost with the vigil, which all are welcome to attend in Sir Nigel Gresley Square in the city centre this Friday from 6.30pm.

Paul Iwanyckyj, chairman of Doncaster Ukrainian Club, said: “It will be about remembering the loved ones who they have had to leave behind to either to fight or had to remain through infirmity.

“It is about remembering the millions like them who have been displaced, and have been dispersed throughout Europe, hoping and praying for peace, and a return home to some semblance of their former lives.

“And of course the tens of thousands of young men, sons, husbands and fathers, lost in this illegal war against their country, that no-one sought or expected, and the tragedy of the many thousands of innocent civilians, many of them children trapped and killed by the conflict.

“It is open to the whole of the Doncaster community and beyond who have been so supportive and generous during the past 12 months, and so welcoming and hospitable to the Ukrainian guests, mainly women and children, that have arrived in the borough.”

Since the war began, hundreds of Ukrainian refugees have made Doncaster their home.