Four years into Russia's occupation of eastern Ukraine, former residents describe a life of fear, violence, and constant surveillance. Inna Vnukova and her family fled their village of Kudriashivka in March 2022, hiding in a damp basement while Russian soldiers looted homes and targeted Ukrainian sympathizers. "We had already said our goodbyes to life," Vnukova said from her new home in Estonia.

In the illegally annexed regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia, Russian authorities have issued 3.5 million passports to residents, forcing Russian citizenship, language, and culture on the population. Human rights groups report widespread detentions, with 16,000 civilians held illegally in secret detention centers where torture and abuse are common. The Center for Civil Liberties documents cases of teachers, journalists, and politicians being targeted for elimination.

Mariupol, once home to half a million people, remains devastated after Russian forces besieged and captured the port city in May 2022. The bombing of the Donetsk Academic Regional Drama Theater killed close to 600 civilians, marking the single deadliest known attack against civilians in the war. As Russia continues its occupation, residents describe a reality where "people there aren't living, they're just surviving," according to former resident Oleksii Vnukov.