Russia called it "grape juice," but the bloodied Ukrainian teacher... Donations gathered for surgery

Ukrainian film director and teacher Olena Kurilo was seriously injured in a Russian missile attack on a civilian apartment near Kharkiv in late February.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Su-mi Hwang] A Ukrainian teacher who was severely injured in a Russian missile attack will receive treatment in the UK thanks to donations.

On the 27th (local time), the UK Daily Mail reported that donations have been raised for Olena Kurilo's vision restoration surgery.

Olena is known as a Ukrainian teacher. At the end of February, when Russia's invasion began, she was seriously injured by a Russian missile attack on a civilian apartment near Kharkiv, Ukraine.

A photo of Olena, covered in blood and wrapped in bandages, was reported by media worldwide and became a representative image revealing the horrors of Ukraine. However, Russia claimed that the person in the photo was a member of the Ukrainian military and that the blood on her face looked like grape juice.

According to the Daily Mail, Olena was severely injured in the face by glass shards shattered by the missile explosion. Her right eye was particularly in critical condition. Olena underwent a 3-hour and 30-minute surgery by Polish medical staff and recovered about one-third of her vision. However, it was predicted that even this recovery would not last long.

The Polish medical team in charge of her treatment also expressed concern that Olena could completely lose her eyesight. They said that to maintain the recovered vision, she would need periodic surgeries every 2 to 3 months.

In response, MailForce, the Daily Mail’s charity organization, started a fundraising campaign to help with Olena’s treatment. As a result, the required amount of ?10,000 (approximately 15.8 million KRW) was raised within 24 hours.

Currently, Olena has moved from Poland to the UK for treatment. She is scheduled to undergo surgery in January next year at a specialized ophthalmology medical institution in London. Since she has already had three surgeries, the medical staff explained that she needs rest for the time being. The medical team expects that Olena’s vision will recover to about 50% with one surgery, the media reported.

On the 24th (local time), a fire broke out near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant complex in Ukraine, which is occupied by Russia, with smoke rising. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, as the war triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has continued for over six months, casualties continue to rise. Recently, Russian forces have taken control of the area around the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine and continued shelling. As a result, on the 11th, some communication and power supply lines at the plant were damaged, and on the 21st, infrastructure inside the plant was damaged by shelling. In response, Ukraine’s state-owned company Energoatom warned, "If Russian forces continue to shell the nuclear plant site, hydrogen or radioactive materials could be released, and there is a high risk of fire."

On the 24th, Russia conducted an airstrike on a train station in Ukraine celebrating its Independence Day, killing dozens of civilians. According to the Associated Press, at a UN Security Council meeting held in New York that day, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned the attack in a video speech, stating, "A train waiting at Chaplyne station in central Ukraine was hit by Russian rocket fire, killing 15 and injuring 50." Meanwhile, Russia reportedly strongly denied attacking civilians.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.