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15th Mar 2022

Emotional moment whole school greets nervous Ukrainian refugee children for their first day

Danny Jones

Entire Italian school welcomes Ukrainian refugees

This is the side of humanity we want to see

In stark contrast to the harsh realities of the Russian invasion, a heartwarming video has captured the moment an entire Italian school welcomed Ukrainian refugees joining as their latest students.

The emotional clip shows two new Ukrainian students, 10-year-old Dmitri and his sister, 8-year-old Victoria, being welcomed by their new classmates at the Don Milani Institute in Naples this past week.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CbF0BYXtPXH/

As per Forbes, around 200 children and teachers gathered at the entrance to the school, donning Ukraine’s yellow and blue flags, applauding and screaming in excitement as they welcomed their new classmates.

Approximately three million people have now fled the Russian invasion and around half of them are thought to be children; according to UNICEF, 55 Ukrainian children have become a refugee every minute for the past 20 days since the Russian invasion began – almost one per second.

While Poland leads the way with around 1.8 million Ukrainians now under their stewardship, Italy is thought to have taken in some 35,000 so far, with powers across Europe being urged to do more.

On Monday, the UK launched its Homes For Ukraine scheme, which incentivises Britons to welcome refugees into their homes while recovering a sizeable monthly payment in the process.

It is reported some 40,000 visas have now been issued to fleeing Ukrainians but many are still disappointed with the UK’s slow uptake. Speaking following the sanctions placed on oligarchs like Roman Abramovic, the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan suggested that their homes should be used to house those still trying to secure safe passage in the biggest refugee crisis since WWII.

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