'I’m seeing dead children': Ukranian volunteer medic sheds light on civilian attacks amid harrowing Russian invasion

A Ukrainian volunteer medic is shedding light on the harrowing scene unfolding in Ukraine as the Russian military invades the country. Speaking to CNN's Jim Scuitto, Tata Marharian, an international law student currently serving as a volunteer medical battalion, said she's helping care for those who have been injured as Russia attacks the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.

When asked what she has witnessed, Marharian shared disturbing accounts of bombings and bloodshed. "I’m seeing dead children," she said on Wednesday, March 2. "I’m seeing hospitals being bombed. I’m seeing churches being bombed. It’s difficult.”

Marharian recalled studying historical incidents of wartime in college, but never imagined witnessing such tragedy in real-life in her own home country:

What am I seeing? I’m seeing my people die. I’m seeing all sorts of horrible things. I studied crimes against humanity at the university. I studied international humanitarian law. I never thought I would see this with my own eyes in my own country.

“It’s horrible to imagine,” Sciutto said as he asked Marharian if she believes her efforts are making an impact.

“I do feel so,” Marharian said with a smile. “I’ve never been more happy to be Ukrainian. I’ve never been more lucky to be born in this country. We all are uniting. We all are consolidating, and one person maybe is powerless to make a difference, but trust me, we’re not one. There are a lot of people fighting here, back to back. So, yeah, we do have hope.”

When asked if she believed Russian soldiers were intentionally targeting Ukrainian civilians, Marharian made it clear that she did not believe their actions were accidental.

“It is not accidental whatsoever," she said. "This is just so ridiculous."