Twice in Two Years: Family That Fled Kyiv Loses Its Home in Belfast

They thought they had found a safe haven from the war in Ukraine and built new lives, but reality struck them again brutally in Belfast.

An Ukrainian family that fled Kyiv after Russia’s full-scale invasion is now being forced to uproot its life once more. After surviving the horrors of war and finding refuge in Belfast, Northern Ireland, their home was badly damaged during violent riots that swept through the city last night.

The riots in Belfast broke out in response to a stabbing attack that took place earlier this week in the north of the city. Anti-immigration protesters took advantage of the situation and set fire to buses and residential buildings.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the violence and called it “entirely unjustifiable,” while the police chief described how his forces had to rescue families, including a two-month-old baby, from homes that were engulfed in flames.

For the Ukrainian family, who sought peace after being forced to leave everything behind because of Russian shelling, the dream of safety once again turned into a nightmare of destruction and displacement.

Northern Ireland’s leadership condemned the events and stressed that “groups of masked men burning families out of their homes are nothing but disgusting cowardice.”