Ukraine brings back nine more children from occupation

"As part of the President of Ukraine’s Bring Kids Back UA initiative, we managed to return nine more Ukrainian children from the temporarily occupied territories," said Daria Zarivna.

According to her, among those brought back is 14-year-old Dmytro, whose home was located near a Russian firing position, forcing his family to live under constant sounds of gunfire. At school, he was forced to sing military songs and throw grenades, while some of his classmates were sent to military camps where they were trained by Wagner mercenaries.

Also returned was little Kateryna, whose mother was forced to obtain a Russian passport — otherwise, she would have been denied medical assistance during a complicated childbirth.

Another boy, 9-year-old Stas, refused to sing the Russian national anthem or participate in militarized activities, despite threats and persecution from teachers and the FSB.

"I thank the Save Ukraine team and all our partners who made this rescue mission possible. We continue to fight for every Ukrainian child," noted the advisor to the Head of the President’s Office.

Deportation of Ukrainian children

According to Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets, since the beginning of the full-scale war, Russia has deported over 19,500 children from Ukraine. More than a thousand Ukrainian children have been successfully brought back home.

The deportation of Ukrainian children was the reason behind the International Criminal Court in The Hague issuing arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia’s Commissioner for Children’s Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova.

Additionally, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine recently passed, in its first reading, a draft law establishing liability for the illegal transfer and use of children for military purposes by representatives of a foreign state.