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Under curfew, Ukrainians mark midsummer with bonfire jumping at a festival with pagan roots
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Ukrainian young women dressed in traditional clothing dance under heavy rain at a traditional Midsummer Night celebration near capital Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, June 23, 2024. The age-old pagan festival is still celebrated in Ukraine amid the third year of Russia-Ukraine war. - photo by AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky
KHOTIV, Ukraine (AP) — Despite war-time restrictions, Ukrainians marked midsummer with festivals that featured frenetic folk dancing, flower decoration and jumping over bonfires. The festival of Ivana Kupala on Sunday was held as Ukrainians start their third summer at war, with Kyiv and other cities hit by regular blackouts and remaining under nightly curfew. An hour’s drive south of the capital, several thousand joined the summer festival, many wearing shirts and dresses embroidered with traditional patterns.