Ukraine brings back more than 20 children from occupied territories
Photo: Ukraine has brought back more than 20 children from occupied territories (t.me/ermaka2022)
Ukraine has managed to bring back another 22 children and teenagers from territories temporarily occupied by Russia. This took place as part of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative, according to a Telegram post by Andriy Yermak, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.
According to Yermak, among those rescued is a 10-year-old boy who was forced to study under the Russian curriculum and was threatened with being sent to "examination" in Crimea with a fabricated psychiatric diagnosis.
A 16-year-old teenager and his younger brother were also returned. Their family faced persecution in their village for refusing to obtain Russian passports and work at a school taken over by the occupying forces.
A 14-year-old girl was also brought back; she had been constantly humiliated at a Russian school because of her Ukrainian heritage.
As the Head of the Office of the President noted, all the rescued children are now safe in Ukrainian-controlled territory. They are receiving psychological support and assistance with documentation.
"I am grateful to Save Ukraine, Helping to Leave, the United Coordination Center for Search and Release, and all partners who helped rescue the children. We are fulfilling the president’s task — to bring back all children," Yermak added.
Deportation of Ukrainian children
According to Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine’s Parliamentary Commissioner for Human Rights, since the start of the full-scale war, Russia has deported over 19,500 children from Ukraine.
At the same time, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that Ukraine has managed to bring back 1,625 children from Russia. This was made possible through the Bring Kids Back UA initiative.
The deportation of Ukrainian children was the reason the International Criminal Court in The Hague issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia’s Commissioner for Children’s Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova.
Recently, it was reported that the number of countries willing to help return Ukrainian children deported by Russia to its territory has increased. This also includes children who are still in occupied areas.
Additionally, a bipartisan group of US senators is calling for Russia to be recognized as a state sponsor of terrorism due to the mass deportation of Ukrainian children from temporarily occupied territories.
