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Young volunteers from the “Repair Together” initiative together with the local residents clean rubble from a house that was destroyed during the Russian invasion, at Ivanivka village, Chernihiv region, Ukraine, 30 July 2022 (issued 04 August 2022). Ivanivka village was under Russian occupation months ago and suffered heavy damage. The volunteer initiative “Repair Together” is made up mostly of young Ukrainians living in Kyiv and other parts of the country and some foreigners. The group of young people, most of whom before the Russian invasion were into Ukraine's nightlife party culture, in the past months has been cleaning and repairing war-damaged buildings in the Chernihiv region, helping to restore Ukrainian communities which were under Russian occupation. Calling their gatherings 'Toloka' and relying on people's donations and their own funds, the initiative that once started as a small group now gathers around 200 people on weekends. Chernihiv region was one of the most affected regions in Ukraine, becoming a battlefield with many people killed and buildings destroyed, and was partly under the Russian occupation from the beginning of the Russian invasion until early April. Russian troops on 24 February 2022 entered Ukrainian territory, starting a conflict that provoked destruction and a humanitarian crisis. (Photo by Roman Pilipey/EPA/EFE)
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