Society & Culture

Composer Ihor Poklad passed away at the age of 83. According to Ukrinform, the news was shared on Facebook by his wife, Svitlana Poklad. "That's it... I loved, love, and will always love... Please pray for Ihor Dmytrovych, for his immortal soul," she wrote. Ihor Poklad was a renowned Ukrainian composer and conductor, a Hero of Ukraine, Laureate of the Shevchenko National Prize, Honored Artist of Ukraine, People’s Artist of the Ukrainian SSR, People’s Artist of Ukraine, and a member of the National Union of Composers of Ukraine. He is the author of many beloved songs, including Kohana (Beloved), Dva…

Seven Ukrainian children, aged 6 to 17, have been successfully returned from temporarily occupied territories. This was announced on Telegram by Andrii Yermak, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, according to Ukrinform. “As part of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Bring Kids Back UA initiative, we managed to return seven more Ukrainian children from the temporarily occupied territories. They are between 6 and 17 years old. Their families lived under constant pressure from the occupation authorities — they were forced to obtain Russian documents, banned from speaking Ukrainian, threatened with loss of parental rights, and denied access to medical…

In the past year and a half, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) has appointed 153 new employees, including 78 detectives and 10 analysts. This was announced by NABU Director Semen Kryvonos in an interview with Ukrinform. “During 2024–2025, the Bureau appointed 153 new employees, including 78 detectives and 10 analysts,” Kryvonos said. According to him, the NABU selection process is lengthy and rigorous, involving multiple stages of testing and integrity checks, including background reviews of candidates and their family members, as well as prior employment history. In addition to hiring detectives, the NABU is also reinforcing divisions responsible…

President Volodymyr Zelensky posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine to National Guard soldier Nazarii Hryncevych. The corresponding decree No. 467/2025 was published on the website of the head of state, Ukrinform reports. "For personal courage and heroism in defending the state sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and selfless service to the Ukrainian people, I hereby decree: to award the title of Hero of Ukraine with the Order of the Golden Star to Nazarii Hryncevych, junior lieutenant (posthumously)," the document says. As reported, combat medic Nazarii Hryncevych (call sign “Hrinka”) was the youngest defender of Azovstal. For three…

An 18-year-old Ukrainian student, Mariia Buhaiova, who had been missing for four days in southern Italy, has been found hanged. That is according to L'Unione Sarda, Ukrinform reports. The young woman was discovered hanged about one kilometer from the tourist village where she had been working. She had suddenly gone missing on Friday, July 4. Buhaiova was in Puglia as part of a European project with the University of Bratislava to do an internship in a tourist village, Meditur, located along the coast of Carovigno in the province of Brindisi. According to the publication, Italian authorities earlier found a note…

A breakthrough on the front lines could significantly shift Ukrainians' attitudes toward the war and the overall situation in the country. Yevhen Holovakha, Director of the Institute of Sociology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, said this in an interview with Ukrinform. "There was a shocking figure — 42% of people don't condemn draft dodgers. They criticize the military enlistment offices, but not the dodgers. And that's alarming. But there is one powerful remedy: if we achieve a serious success on the battlefield, public sentiment will immediately soar," Holovakha said. The sociologist noted that a similar effect was…

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew held a meeting in Istanbul with the families of Ukrainian prisoners of war and those missing in action, greeting them with the words "Glory to Ukraine." According to Ukrinform, Ukraine's Consul General in Istanbul, Roman Nedilskyi, announced this on Facebook. "We thank His All-Holiness for his blessing and prayers for our Heroes — may they return home to their loved ones alive and in good health," Nedilskyi wrote. He also noted that there are real stories of remarkable events in which, following the Patriarch's blessing, some POWs returned home or families received long-awaited news about their missing…

The hot phase of the war could end within 1–2 years, and about 30% of Ukrainian refugees may return home. This opinion was expressed in an interview with Ukrinform by Yevhen Holovakha, Director of the Institute of Sociology at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. “I believe that if the war in Ukraine lasts another year or two, we can expect about 30% of refugees to return. I’m one of those experts who predict that the war will end in that timeframe,” said Holovakha. In his view, the broader conflict with Russia will continue as long as the political…

Semen Kryvonos, Director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), acknowledged that Timur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration (KCMA), is his brother-in-law. He shared this in an interview with Ukrinform. “It’s something of an open secret — Head of the Kyiv City Military Administration Timur Tkachenko is married to the biological sister of my wife. He is my brother-in-law. Naturally, our wives are close and communicate, and Timur and I may occasionally see each other or talk at family events,” Kryvonos said. He also dismissed any suggestion of involvement in the high-profile Kyiv land corruption case,…

The key perpetrator behind the attack has been named. Reconstruction has finally begun, though the process has been overshadowed by bureaucracy and complications around tenders. Exactly one year ago, on the morning of July 8, 2024, Russia launched a massive missile attack across Ukraine. One of the primary targets in Kyiv was Okhmatdyt, the country's leading children's hospital, where 627 young patients were present at the time. The attack became not just another war crime, but a grim symbol of the aggressor's cruelty and cynicism — a moment seared into the nation's collective memory. The strike killed two adults, injured…