Kyiv, capital of
Ukraine
and a centuries-old city, is in the middle of a siege. Earlier this
week, residents of Kyiv woke up to the sound of explosions, their city shaking.
Thousands of Ukrainians are fleeing and thousands of others are taking up arms
to fight the Russian aggression. In this definitive struggle for the fate of
Europe, there are these everyday stories of courage, and then there are legends.
The ‘Ghost of Kyiv’ is one such.

On the face of the
Russian attack, a Ukrainian fighter pilot – a MiG-29 fighter jet pilot – shoots
down six Russian planes. Thus goes the video circulating widely on social
media. While the authenticity of the video and its primary source remain shrouded
in doubt, the story itself is imbibing in Ukrainians to not go gentle into the
night, to fight back.

Also Read | Russia-Ukraine conflict: A brief history

The video, which
has been fact-checked by various global news agencies, is said to be from a
video game named “Digital Combat Simulator”. The Ukraine Ministry of Defense
too had shared the video on Twitter with an inaccurate caption, the Associated
Press reported.

While the Ghost of
Kyiv is unlikely to be rooted in fact, it has served a purpose. It has given
Ukrainians a narrative of resistance where they, with their very limited
capacity compared to Russia, may be able to fight back.

Also Read | Kyiv Mayor: Russian troops very close to Ukrainian capital, situation threatening

Ukraine has called
upon citizens to join the war effort. The Ministry of Defence has asked
citizens to report movement of troops and through Molotov cocktails (fire
bombs) to “neutralise the enemy”. Earlier this week, the Ukrainian Parliament
gave civilians permission to bear arms.

Vitali Klitschko, Kyiv
mayor
, said Friday that the city “has entered into a defensive phase…shots and
explosions are ringing out in some neighbourhoods, saboteurs have already
entered Kyiv.” “The enemy wants to put the capital on its knees and destroy us.”