Exclusive: On July 11, Kharkiv was attacked five times in 10 hours. Russian terrorism brought death, destruction, and an increased resolve among the citizens of the city

A rain storm and rockets from Russia both started coming down in the middle of the night, and neither stopped as morning came.

Moving from a 13th-floor North Saltivka apartment to a fourth-floor unit on Sumska street in downtown Kharkiv was supposed to result in a quieter, safer living situation.

Four hours after going to sleep in my new home, around 3:30 am, that illusion was forever crushed by the sounds of air raid sirens starting and then three clear explosions just minutes later.

Morning brought the extent of the destruction that had coursed through the darkened sky, included in the toll of casualties was the death of three civilians, and injuries to almost 20 more.

While daylight brought the ability to assess the damage around the city, it didn’t quell the Russian taste for the innocent blood of Ukrainians.

As press and onlookers gathered to watch brave first responders work through the rain to explore the wreckage on the upper levels of an apartment building, two more rockets struck the drenched city.

This time the targets were a tire shop, and an area of critical infrastructure.

The double strike, which brought massive plumes of smoke rising above Kharkiv’s skyline, was a reminder that the need to be on guard against the unrelenting acts of Russian terror was a 24-hour-a-day effort.

Still, examples of Kharkiv’s iron resolve were on display, not far from the first set of attacks, where shoppers at Nikolsly mall braved the weather and rocket strikes to shop in a building that was under repair from an artillery strike just a few weeks prior.

The shoppers were also a reminder of a simple fact: Ukraine has already won.