Russian attack in Ukraine kills 96-year-old Holocaust survivor

Borys Romanchenko, a 96-year-old Holocaust survivor who went through four concentration camps during World War II, was killed Friday by a Russian strike in Kharkiv, Ukraine.
His death was confirmed by the Buchenwald Memorial, which said it was "stunned" by the news. Romanchenko, who survived the Buchenwald, Peenemünde, Dora, and Bergen-Belsen camps, later served as vice president of the Buchenwald-Dora International Committee and worked "intensively on the memory of Nazi crimes," the Buchenwald Memorial said.
Romanchenko's granddaughter, Yulia Romanchenko, told CNN her grandfather lived in Kharkiv's Saltivka district. There was shelling in the area, and when she arrived at her grandfather's house, she found it "completely burned down. There were no windows, no balcony, nothing in his apartment."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Borys Romanchenko was one of the last living Buchenwald survivors in Ukraine, and in recent years attended events there commemorating its 1945 liberation. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba tweeted on Monday that Romanchenko's death was an "unspeakable crime. Survived Hitler, murdered by Putin."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
South Korea highlights: ancient history meets modern culture
The Week Recommends From the bright lights of Seoul to Busan's beaches and the 'living museum' of Gyeongju, this tour offers a taste of a unique heritage
-
July 22 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Tuesday's political cartoons include Donald Trump's birthday wishes for Jeffrey Epstein, Tulsi Gabbard, and renaming the Washington Commanders
-
Are we facing a summer of riots?
Today's Big Question Anti-immigrant unrest in Essex has sparked fears of a summer of disorder
-
Ottawa Treaty: why are Russia's neighbours leaving anti-landmine agreement?
Today's Big Question Ukraine to follow Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia as Nato looks to build a new ‘Iron Curtain' of millions of landmines
-
How drone warfare works
The Explainer From Ukraine to Iran, it has become clear that unmanned aircraft are rapidly revolutionising modern warfare
-
How long can Nato keep Donald Trump happy?
Today's Big Question Military alliance pulls out all the stops to woo US president on his peacemaker victory lap
-
How far would Russia go for Iran?
Today's Big Question US air strikes represent an 'embarrassment, provocation and opportunity' all rolled into one for Vladimir Putin
-
Are the UK and Russia already at war?
Today's Big Question Moscow has long been on a 'menacing' war footing with London, says leading UK defence adviser
-
Is UK's new defence plan transformational or too little, too late?
Today's Big Question Labour's 10-year strategy 'an exercise in tightly bounded ambition' already 'overshadowed by a row over money'
-
How will the MoD's new cyber command unit work?
Today's Big Question Defence secretary outlines plans to combat 'intensifying' threat of cyberattacks from hostile states such as Russia
-
What are the different types of nuclear weapons?
The Explainer Speculation mounts that post-war taboo on nuclear weapons could soon be shattered by use of 'battlefield' missiles