'Anton is not there': families of missing Ukrainian fighters cling to hope

Nadiia Makarenko looks at a picture of her son Anton, who disappeared in 2015 after leaving his home near Kyiv to fight Russia-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine, during an interview with Reuters in the village of Kalyta in Kyiv Region, Ukraine January 31, 2022. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko

KYIV (Reuters) - Nadiia Makarenko's son Anton disappeared seven years ago after leaving his home near Kyiv to fight Russia-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine. She still does not know if he is alive or dead.

Through tears, she recalls how Anton, then a 24-year-old sergeant, got a haircut and then made the 800 km (500 mile) journey to the Donbass region in early February 2015 to join the Ukrainian forces battling the rebels.