- December 22, 2025
- 4:08 pm
- Ukraine
“I survived the Holocaust and then under Russian bombs. The story is repeating itself. But Ukraine must survive.”
Russia follows in the footsteps of the Nazis, destroying Ukrainians just as Hitler destroyed the Jews.
“We thought this would not happen again. But Russia has proven that we were mistaken.”
Elvira Borts’ story was shared at the opening of the Exhibition “Ukrainian-Jewish Century: Photographs and Stories of 1920-1924” on January 27, 2025, at the National Historical and Memorial Reserve “Babi Yar,” opened in memory of the victims of the Holocaust.
The exhibition was attended by:
- Lyubov Borts – the widow of Elvira’s late brother.
- Inna Zakalok – Lyubov’s daughter.
- Mark Zakalok – Elvira’s grandson, a defender of Azovstal and former prisoner of war.
Elvira Borts did not survive until the opening of the exhibition, but her story became part of the exhibition.
“With the Germans, Elvira was briefly disguised so that it was not clear that she was Jewish. Then 39 people named Borts were shot in Mariupol.
During the Russian occupation, when passing through checkpoints, we were saved only by the fact that Elvira’s husband was a blockade survivor from Leningrad and, during the Soviet era, was an officer in the navy.
That’s why the Russians did not shoot us,” – Lyubov Borts, Elvira’s sister-in-law, recounts.
Together, they escaped from the besieged Mariupol in 2022. Lyubov attended the exhibition with her grandson Mark, who had been captured and recently freed. Elvira died last year in Kyiv, and her husband passed away even earlier.
A girl hiding from the Nazis, and an old woman fleeing from the Russians
Elvira Borts was born into a Jewish family in Mariupol. In 1941, when the city was occupied by the Nazis, most of her relatives were shot, and Elvira was hidden by another family in their basement.
“I saw how my neighbors were taken away, and no one else saw them again. I heard the cries of children who were scared. I lived in fear,” she recalled.
After 80 years, she had to hide yet again – this time from the Russian army.
On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion. In the first days of the war, Mariupol was bombarded by aviation and artillery.
“We understood that the city could not endure. We heard explosions and saw how our houses crumbled,” Elvira remembered.
At the same time, her grandson Mark, a 19-year-old fighter in the National Guard, was defending Azovstal.
53 days of hell in besieged Mariupol
87-year-old Elvira Borts and her family found themselves trapped. Light, water, and communication were lost in the first days of the siege.
“Every day began in horror. You wake up, and you don’t know if you will live to see evening. People were dying from hunger, wounds, and fear,” she lamented.
At home, the food ran out. They melted snow to stockpile even a little something.
“We divided one portion of soup into three. We hoped at least something would get better. But it only got worse,” she said.
On March 17, Mark suddenly entered Elvira’s apartment. He was in a uniform stained with blood, but not his own.
“Mark brought us cookies. A huge box. He said, ‘Stock up; there won’t be any more.’”
This cookies were the only food for the next month.
“We had to make do with five pieces a day. This was our only way to survive,” she recalled.
Captivity and Elvira’s escape
On April 14, 2022, Elvira and her family managed to leave Mariupol.
“We drove through the checkpoints, and every second I thought, ‘Now they will shoot us,’” her daughter-in-law recalled.
Mark Zakalok – a 19-year-old fighter of the National Guard of Ukraine, who defended Azovstal during the siege of Mariupol.
From the outset of the invasion, his unit remained in the besieged city, managing to hold the defense of the plant for 82 days.
On March 17, he last saw his family when he broke into their home and brought them food.
“Stock up; there won’t be any more,” he told them before returning to Azovstal.
On May 17, the garrison received an order to cease resistance, after which the fighters were captured.
Mark and his unit surrendered when the garrison of Azovstal had no chance of defense.
“I thought I would never see him again. When he was taken, I prayed,” she said.
He was held captive for 172 days.
On November 3, he was exchanged and returned to Kyiv.
“When I saw him, I could not believe it was real. He looked exhausted, but he was alive. I hugged him just like I hugged my father in ’45 when he returned from the front,” she said.
The world has not learned its historical lessons once again
Elvira Borts did not live to see the end of the war.
She passed away in 2023 in Kyiv, never witnessing the liberation of her native Mariupol.
But her words will forever serve as a reminder:
“I survived the Holocaust and then under Russian bombs. The story is repeating itself. But Ukraine must survive.”
Russia follows in the footsteps of the Nazis, destroying Ukrainians just as Hitler destroyed the Jews.
“We thought this would not happen again. But Russia has proven that we were mistaken.”
Can the world stop the new genocide?
NAnews – Israeli news continues to tell the truth about Russia’s crimes.
The story will not forgive those who remain silent.
Previously, on May 2, 2022, Elvira shared her story with Radio Free Europe. Here it is – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rsdoxxfmdy.
