A Ukrainian family of 10 who spent almost three weeks travelling to the UK have moved into a country home provided by a Cambridgeshire businessman.
The family, who range in age from 10 to 90, fled their home city of Kharkiv after five days hiding in a basement and were granted British visas under the Ukraine Family Scheme.
Great-grandmother Ludmila Starkova, the matriarch of the clan, wiped away tears of sadness and relief after she walked through the doors of her new home in the village of Caldecote.
Mick Swinhoe, an executive at an industrial automation company, bought the property only weeks ago to use as a “project house” but decided to offer it to refugees after Russian invaded Ukraine.
Mr Swinhoe, 52, who lives nearby, said he wanted his investment to be used for “something more useful until I do something else with it”.
“It’s a better use for it, really,” he said. “I can do what I want to do later when things get better.”
The family were helped by their relative Roman Starkov, a British citizen who has been in the UK for 20 years and now lives in Cambridge.
Eight of the family members travelled to the UK by taking a flight from Albania to London's Luton Airport while Mr Starkov’s sister, Valeria Starkova, 37, and his father, Mykola, 59, came by car.
The pair opted for a car and ferry journey so they could bring more of their belongings and their two dogs, Yorkshire terrier Mikki and mini Maltese Florie.
Ms Starkova said she and her relatives were “exhausted” after spending 20 days travelling from Kharkiv to the UK.
She said when the war broke out in her home city, “it was 5am, we packed a few suitcases and I went to my mum’s home and we stayed there for five days as it was so scary to go outside”.
“We were in the basement,” she said. “We couldn’t go outside. We stayed for five days in the basement without going anywhere.
“Then we decided that we had to leave as we couldn’t sleep, it was so scary. We just put our bags in the cars and went.
“We were so afraid someone would shoot our car or something like that. Recently, friends of my friends were shot like that.
“It was so scary but we managed to go through the borders and when we passed several cities we felt relieved as we couldn’t hear those bombs and those scary noises.
“The first night we slept it was so quiet.”
Mr Starkov, 38, helped his family through the visa process after they had arrived in Albania.
“You have to fill out arcane forms and for such a big group there’s a lot of repetition, but once that was sorted we went to a visa application centre, they processed us very quickly, that was in Albania,” the software developer said.
He said his grandmother did not have a valid international passport and had wanted to stay in Ukraine.
“On every border that was a challenge,” he said. “Fortunately every single border they figured something out and allowed her to pass.”
We were so afraid someone would shoot our car or something like that. Recently, friends of my friends were shot like that
Valeria Starkova,
Ukrainian refugee
Mr Starkov has “mixed emotions” about his family’s safe journey to the UK.
“Yes, they are safe, that’s amazing,” he said. “They’ve still lost everything.
“There’s still hope that maybe they can go back and maybe what they left behind will still be there. Maybe not.
“And there’s a lot of uncertainty about their future here. Will they fit in, will they find a place, will they feel comfortable? I don’t know.”
The mother of two, who worked as a nail technician before the Russian invasion, said she felt like Mr Swinhoe and others who had helped were “saving our lives”.
“Otherwise. I don’t know where we would stay because it’s quite expensive and OK, we could for a couple of weeks, but we need to live every day and we need to find a job first,” she said.
“I’m so grateful for everyone who supports us and can give us some place to live. I really appreciate it.”
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Mica
Director: Ismael Ferroukhi
Stars: Zakaria Inan, Sabrina Ouazani
3 stars
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
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French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
Results
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Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
The Bio
Favourite place in UAE: Al Rams pearling village
What one book should everyone read: Any book written before electricity was invented. When a writer willingly worked under candlelight, you know he/she had a real passion for their craft
Your favourite type of pearl: All of them. No pearl looks the same and each carries its own unique characteristics, like humans
Best time to swim in the sea: When there is enough light to see beneath the surface
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
RESULT
Aston Villa 1
Samatta (41')
Manchester City 2
Aguero (20')
Rodri (30')
AL%20BOOM
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The Lost Letters of William Woolf
Helen Cullen, Graydon House
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
MO
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Company%C2%A0profile
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Essentials
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Delhi from about Dh950 return including taxes.
The hotels
Double rooms at Tijara Fort-Palace cost from 6,670 rupees (Dh377), including breakfast.
Doubles at Fort Bishangarh cost from 29,030 rupees (Dh1,641), including breakfast. Doubles at Narendra Bhawan cost from 15,360 rupees (Dh869). Doubles at Chanoud Garh cost from 19,840 rupees (Dh1,122), full board. Doubles at Fort Begu cost from 10,000 rupees (Dh565), including breakfast.
The tours
Amar Grover travelled with Wild Frontiers. A tailor-made, nine-day itinerary via New Delhi, with one night in Tijara and two nights in each of the remaining properties, including car/driver, costs from £1,445 (Dh6,968) per person.
Sri Lanka World Cup squad
Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Lasith Malinga, Angelo Mathews, Thisara Perera, Kusal Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Mendis, Isuru Udana, Milinda Siriwardana, Avishka Fernando, Jeevan Mendis, Lahiru Thirimanne, Jeffrey Vandersay, Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The Cairo Statement
1: Commit to countering all types of terrorism and extremism in all their manifestations
2: Denounce violence and the rhetoric of hatred
3: Adhere to the full compliance with the Riyadh accord of 2014 and the subsequent meeting and executive procedures approved in 2014 by the GCC
4: Comply with all recommendations of the Summit between the US and Muslim countries held in May 2017 in Saudi Arabia.
5: Refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of countries and of supporting rogue entities.
6: Carry out the responsibility of all the countries with the international community to counter all manifestations of extremism and terrorism that threaten international peace and security
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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