Ukrainian schools train for bomb alerts
How much explosive can this fluffy toy owl hold?
This is what this Ukrainian bomb disposal serviceman asked astonished children in an emergency drill class in Kyiv.
Law enforcement officers organized the training after a series of hoax bomb alerts forced evacuation of schools in the capital and other cities.
The servicemen showed the class video clips of explosions and scattering shrapnel, artillery and mortar shells, grenades and mines, as well as improvised explosive devices - some resembling a box of chocolates and a mobile phone case.
Then a siren went off at the school. Everyone rose to evacuate.
All of this is a stark reminder of the peculiar state Ukraine currently finds itself in - neither at war nor at peace.
Kyiv blames the hoax alerts on Russia already waging what they call a hybrid war against its former Soviet satellite.
Ukraine's Security Service says they sow anxiety and panic among the public.
It had recorded more than 300 bomb threats so far this year, compared to 1,100 for the whole of 2021. The Kremlin did not respond to a request for comment.
Kyiv says Russia is threatening a full-blown invasion by amassing more than 100,000 troops near the border.
Moscow denies this.
Russian officials have blamed Ukraine for similar series of bomb hoaxes that have forced schools, shopping centers and kindergartens to evacuate tens of thousands of people.
The West has threatened Russia with severe sanctions if it invades Ukraine.
NATO has put its forces on standby.
As for the students lining up in the snow-covered school yard in Kyiv for the drills...
"I liked it. This is very good practice, because if, God forbid, if this really happens, we are ready. And we won't panic, I hope."
