The ordeal happened in Ukraine’s embattled southern city of Mariupol, the niezalezna.pl website reported.
Ukraine’s defence ministry announced the news of the woman’s death on Twitter, adding that her son’s hair had turned grey following the horrific scenes, according niezalezna.pl.
“This is not a horror movie. Rape, violence, murder - such is the meaning of Russian peace,” the Ukrainian defence ministry said, as cited by niezalezna.pl.
‘Refugees are traumatised’
Meanwhile, the European Union Commissioner for Home Affairs on Wednesday warned that an increasing number of people fleeing the Russian invasion were traumatised, niezalezna.pl wrote.
Ylva Johansson was speaking before the EU’s European Committee of the Regions, an advisory body that brings together local government officials from all 27 member states of the bloc.
She emphasised that “scenes from Mariupol and other cities” make it obvious that refugees “are suffering from trauma,” as cited by niezalezna.pl.
Johansson recounted her recent conversation with Ukraine’s Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskiy in which Monastyrskiy said that “Russian troops are systematically raping women, often in front of children,” according to niezalezna.pl.
“There is no doubt that these refugees are traumatised,” Johansson said, as quoted by niezalezna.pl.
‘Poland provides the most help’
Johansson was also quoted as saying that Europe was in the middle of “the biggest refugee crisis since the Second World War,” with an estimated 3.8 million people having poured into the EU since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, niezalezna.pl reported.
She praised Poland for “providing the most help” and housing to “more than 2 million refugees, the biggest number also when compared to the local population,” according to niezalezna.pl.
Johansson thanked the bloc’s cities and regions for “doing an extraordinary work to welcome refugees.”
She also called on the EU to do more to better protect separated children and combat human trafficking, niezalezna.pl reported.
Thursday is day 36 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Poland on Thursday reported it had welcomed 2.39 million refugees fleeing Russia's war on Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: niezalezna.pl, PAP, europa.eu