A 7-year-old Ukrainian girl with cancer was killed in a missile strike in Israel, after she and her mother fled from the Ukraine war to seek treatment.
It comes after Israel announced it was launching Operation Rising Lion on Iran on June 13, targeting nuclear sites.
Iran responded with missile and drone strikes on Israeli cities, including Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and areas along the coast.
Highlights
- Seven-year-old Nastya, a Ukrainian cancer patient, was killed in an Iranian missile strike in Israel after fleeing the Ukraine war to seek treatment.
- Nastya, her mother, grandmother, and two cousins died when a missile hit their Bat Yam apartment amid escalating Israeli-Iranian conflict.
- Her father, Artem, remains fighting in Ukraine and is now the sole surviving member of their immediate family.
A Ukrainian child who fled to Israel for her cancer treatment died in Iranian strikes
Image credits: Бурик Анастасія Артемівна/ Facebook
One missile struck the Bat Yam apartment building where Nastya and her family were living.
The strike killed Nastya, her mother Maria, her grandmother Olena, and her cousins Konstantin, 9, and Ilya, 7.
At least 24 people have died in Israel and more than 600 in Iran since the conflict between the countries escalated a week ago.
Nastya’s father, Artem, remains in Ukraine, where he continues to serve in the army. He is now the only surviving member of his immediate family.
Image credits: Gili Yaari/Getty Images
“Just yesterday we were preparing a publication for collection, and rushed to report the news that nastusâ became a little better. That hope is not lost,” a translated statement from The Land of Good Deeds charity foundation, which helped with Nastya’s treatment in Israel, said.
“What treatment gives, even though it is small, but still, improvement... And today we have to announce that Nastya is no more.”
When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Nastya’s hometown, Odesa, came under regular missile attacks.
That same year, Nastya was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a rare and aggressive blood cancer.
Her father, Artem Buryk, joined Ukraine’s 95th Airborne Assault Brigade.
Image credits: x.com
“On August 29, 2022, we heard the terrible news: ‘Your daughter has cancer’. Since that day, I have been living in a parallel reality, where the main thing is to save. To breathe. To not give up,” her mother Maria Peshkurova wrote on social media.
After the initial diagnosis, Nastya received chemotherapy in Ukraine. Her condition briefly improved, but the cancer relapsed.
As Ukraine’s medical system struggled under the pressure of war, her family began looking abroad for better treatment options.
In December 2022, the family took Nastya to Israel for advanced care. It was mainly self-funded, with some donations from crowdfunding.
Artem remained in Ukraine, serving in the military.
Image credits: Бурик Анастасія Артемівна/ Facebook
This was almost a year before the Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023.
Doctors in Israel performed a bone marrow transplant. However, the transplant failed, and the leukemia came back.
The family faced difficulties paying for continued treatment. At one point, Nastya was discharged from the hospital due to unpaid bills.
Artem sent video messages from the front line asking for help, and donations allowed treatment to continue.
Doctors offered a new and risky procedure aimed at making the transplant more effective.
“In addition to the basic diagnosis, she also has osteoporosis, which complicates the treatment. The only chance for salvation is a bone marrow transplant being scheduled here in Israel,” Maria wrote.
Maria agreed to the treatment, saying there was no other choice. “We are taking a risk, but in our case the disease can win without it. I am afraid, but I choose hope,” she wrote in a social media post earlier this year.
In early 2025, Nastya’s grandmother, Olena, flew to Israel to help the family. She brought along Nastya’s cousins, Konstantin and Ilya.
The children enrolled in local schools in Israel. At the time, it was seen as a safer option than remaining in Odesa, where fighting continued.
Nastya's father, a soldier in the Ukrainian army, is the only surviving member of the family
Image credits: Mostafa Alkharouf/Getty Images
According to Ynet, the Ukrainian Embassy in Israel is now trying to organize the repatriation of the bodies, but due to closed airspace, it is technically impossible.
“Ukrainian diplomats and consular staff are in close contact with the Israel Police and other services to identify and arrange the repatriation of the victims’ bodies,” the Ukrainian Embassy said in a statement.
Nastya’s case is one of many civilian tragedies resulting from the wider conflict in the Middle East.
Israel’s operation against Iran is aimed at weakening its nuclear and missile programs. Iran, in turn, has launched strikes against Israeli targets. Both sides have warned of further escalation.
U.S. President Donald Trump has said he will decide within two weeks whether the United States will join Israel’s military action.
The U.S. is currently in contact with Iran, hoping for a diplomatic solution. European countries are also working to de-escalate the situation.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned that any active U.S. involvement would cause “irreparable damage” and would be met with serious retaliation.
In the midst of these global tensions, the personal cost of war is being felt by families like the Buryks.