It looked like any other Eastern bloc-style building, but a four-bedroom apartment in the capital of Ukraine was, for five years, a crucial lifeline for the countrys LGBT+ community.

Now its gone.

An LGBT+ shelter in Kyiv ran out of money and was forced to close its doors, severing off a pocket of protection in a war-tugged country where citizens and officials divide on queer rights.

Opened by the LGBT+ non-government organisation Insight in 2014, it became the first shelter specifically to house queer folk. But organisers folded the hostel after a struggle with funding, they confirmed to PinkNews.

Read the whole article on PinkNews