Ukraine: Cambridge man has mixed emotions about fleeing country

Harry Lee, a British teacher, said it felt "very strange" to be leaving the country he loves.

A British teacher living in Ukraine said he had "mixed emotions" about fleeing the country.

Harry Lee, from Cambridge, worked in Kharkiv in north-east Ukraine and lived with his Ukrainian girlfriend.

Mr Lee previously said he did not want to leave the country but as the situation escalated the couple decided to head for the Moldovan border.

"We're happy to be safe here tonight but our thoughts are with the people in Kharkiv," he said.

Mr Lee said reality hit when he saw the damage to buildings

Mr Lee and his partner travelled with a small group of people to a town about five hours from the border, where they will stay the night.

"We left at 07:30 this morning and on the road out of Kharkiv it was very busy, with a lot of people, large queues," he said.

"On the way we saw tanks, we saw soldiers patrolling the streets and heard three explosions which turned out to be the explosions in Independence Square and the surrounding areas, which is about seven minutes walk from where our apartment is."

Mr Lee said the group also saw a lot of destruction caused by explosions in the area.

"It's a stark reminder of how deadly this war can be," he said.

"Seeing the damage itself for the first time in person was a bit of a shock."

Mr Lee said the group spent about nine hours driving on Thursday

Mr Lee said it was a "very strange" to be leaving the city he called home.

"There's mixed emotions when you leave a place that you really love being in," he said.

"And we're hoping that one day, and hopefully soon, we will be able to return back to the beautiful and wonderful city."