Ukrainian girl who captured world’s heart singing Let It Go safely makes it to Poland… but so many are still in hell
THE angelic girl who captured hearts around the world by singing Let It Go to classmates sheltering from Russian fire has made it safely to Poland, The Sun can reveal.
Seven-year-old Amelia Anisovych completed the gruelling two-day trip after spending six days in a Kyiv bunker.
But tens of thousands of other children are still trapped across besieged Ukraine.
They include one injured by an airstrike on the city of Sumy overnight.
The attack is feared to have killed at least 18 people, some of them infants.
Amelia sang the classic from Disney’s Frozen to keep up the spirits of pals and teachers — and a 92-second video clip went global.
Last night Mum Lilia, 39, said: “I always knew Amelia was very talented and a sweet angel and now the whole world knows the same.
“But it is a tragedy that she is only a star because of so much death and destruction.
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“Amelia’s video showed the conditions that children had to suffer because of Putin.
“We were down there for a whole week with not enough food. To go to the toilet we had to run upstairs as his missiles were flying overhead.
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“The children were terrified. But the video shows the world is united and stands with us and that gives us hope.”
Lilia recalled how she and husband Roman, 36, had headed to the shelter with Amelia and their son Misha, 15, after a teacher called to say the invasion had begun.
Within 48 hours around 200 people were packed in and tempers were fraying.
Lilia said: “She was chatting to a woman and explained she liked to sing so this lady encouraged her.
“She asked my permission to film her and of course I said yes. Even babies stopped crying while she sang and the arguments stopped.”
Businesswoman Lilia and Roman, who run a medical supplies company, took the difficult decision three days ago to send their children to Poland with their gran.
The couple have stayed behind to cook meals for troops defending the capital.
She said: “I was so sad to wave goodbye to my children but it was the best thing to do to make sure they are safe.
“I think Kyiv will stand and we will win. But at what price? How many children must die?
“Children should be free to play and be happy and sing songs from Frozen — but Putin has made it so they are cowering in terror in underground bunkers.”
The video was shot by mum-of-two Marta Smekhova, 45, who chatted to Amelia when she and other kids drew pictures to brighten the bunker walls.
She said: “Amelia said she had always wanted to sing to an audience. She was worried no one would hear because it was noisy. But as soon as she started singing it went silent.
'HOW MANY CHILDREN MUST DIE?'
“I promised her there and then that not only the bunker would hear her voice but the whole world would.”
US actress and singer Idina Menzel, 50, who performed the original, tweeted: “We see you. We really, really see you,” followed by a blue and a yellow heart.
Yet meanwhile Vladimir Putin’s war machine continued to target women and children — and even ramped up attacks on hospitals.
A shocking image of one bloodied tot was released by Ukraine’s parliament following the Sumy attacks.
A humanitarian corridor was finally opened to evacuate civilians from the city of Sumy after days of false starts.
Others were being evacuated from the town of Irpin, the scene of fierce fighting in recent days in which merciless Putin has been accused of adopting “siege and starve” tactics.
Elsewhere Russian troops continued to blast urban centres, making it impossible for residents to escape.
Officials revealed that seven-year-old Alisa Hlans had died in hospital from injuries received in a banned cluster bomb attack in Okhtyrka.
And in besieged Mariupol, a child died from dehydration after days without water.
Thousands of residents have been trapped there for days without power and heating as temperatures in parts of the country plunged to -10C.
In Shybene, 40 miles from capital Kyiv, ten-year-old Anastasia Stoluk was shot dead in front of her uncle by Russian soldiers firing wildly after swigging looted booze.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, addressing the Commons by video link, revealed at least 50 children have now been killed in the conflict.
2 MILLION REFUGEES
Confirmed victims include world maths champion Yulia Zdanovska, 21 — killed in an air assault on Kharkiv.
With US officials saying nearly all of the 190,000 Russian troops amassed on the Ukrainian border in recent months are now in Ukraine, the number of refugees fleeing since the start of the conflict has now topped two million.
The grim toll makes it Europe’s worst crisis since World War Two.
The UN said there had been 1,335 civilian casualties with 474 killed and 861 injured — but the true toll is likely to be much higher.
The Vatican called on Russia to cease its attacks and allow civilians to leave the besieged areas.
Brave 11-year-old Hassan Pisecká, whose lone journey 750 miles across Ukraine was detailed in yesterday’s Sun, has been reunited with his brothers and sisters in Slovakia.
He left Zaporizhzhia with just a carrier bag, his passport, a note from his mum and a phone number scribbled on the back of his hand in biro.
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Border officials read the letter and rang relatives in Bratislava who came to collect him.
Hassan’s mum, Yulia, was forced to stay at home to look after his disabled gran.
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