Shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, student Alexander Gertz decides to travel to his mother’s homeland. He becomes involved in humanitarian aid and joins the army as a medic in autumn 2023. At the front, he experiences unimaginable things. And eventually begins to write them down.
“For the first time in minutes, we can catch our breath. And think. Until now, we’ve been fleeing aimlessly from the drones. Without a map or a radio, that might just as well mean we’re heading straight for Russian positions. There’s long since been no clear front line in the village. It happens that we’re in one house, and the enemy is already in the houses around us.”
Operating directly on the frontline, Gertz records the unimaginable horror of drone combat. Moving past strategic geopolitical abstractions, his notebook bears witness to the brutal erosion of human life, creating a powerful modern anti-war statement that demands the world look at a conflict fading from global headlines.
