SHOTLIST:

ANNEXED REGIONS BY RUSSIA (SEPT. 29, 2025) (ANADOLU - ACCESS ALL)

1. VARIOUS POV SHOTS OF CITIES UNDER RUSSIAN CONTROL

2. VARIOUS OF DAMAGED BUILDINGS AND ROADS

3. SIGN READING “KURAKHOVO” AT CITY ENTRANCE (TWO SHOTS)

4. VARIOUS OF EMPTY STREETS AND DAMAGED BUILDINGS

PEOPLE LOOKING AT CLOTHES AT HUMANITARIAN AID POINT

5. VARIOUS OF PEOPLE PLAYING GAMES

6. VARIOUS SHOTS OF EMPTY STREETS AND DAMAGED BUILDINGS

7. EXTERIOR OF AVDIYIVKA CITY ADMINISTRATION BUILDING WITH SIGN IN RUSSIAN

8. INTERIOR OF AVDIYIVKA CITY ADMINISTRATION BUILDING (TWO SHOTS)

9. EXTERIOR OF CHURCH UNDER RENOVATION

10. VARIOUS OF WORKERS REPAIRING CHURCH WALLS WITH SCAFFOLDING

11. POV. SHOT OF CITIES UNDER RUSSIAN CONTROL ANNEXED REGIONS BY RUSSIA - SEPT. 29: Three years have passed since Russia signed agreements to annex Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia on Sept. 30, 2022.

In areas under Russian control, residents are slowly returning to their homes despite heavy damage from the conflict.

In the city of Kurahovo, taken by Russian forces in January 2025 after intense fighting, about 1,000 people now live there, compared with only a few dozen during the height of clashes. Shops and local facilities have reopened, and efforts continue to restore electricity, heating and water supplies.

Residents have begun receiving Russian passports and identification documents, while Russian military police maintain security in the city.

In Avdiyivka, seized by Russian troops in February 2024, reconstruction is underway in an area heavily damaged by years of fighting. Six new residential buildings have been constructed and 181 apartments repaired, with families moving back.

Before the war, Avdiyivka had a population of around 32,000, but today only about 1,200 people remain.

The annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia was announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin during a Kremlin ceremony, declaring that the regions would “forever” be part of Russia.

Russia started its "special military operation" on Feb. 24, 2022 and claimed that it is aimed at protecting people in the eastern region of Ukraine.

Since then, millions have been displaced, thousands have lost their homes, and hundreds of medical and educational institutions have been destroyed.