Ukraine brings home more children taken from Russian-occupied territories
Ukraine has returned another group of children from occupation (photo: Getty Images)
Ukraine has succeeded in returning another group of children from territories temporarily occupied by Russia. This took place within the framework of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative, according to the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Andriy Yermak.
According to Yermak, a 15-year-old girl was returned who had persistently worn a traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirt (vyshyvanka) to a Russian school, standing up for her pro-Ukrainian stance. For this, she was brutally bullied and beaten, while teachers filed reports and threatened her mother with the loss of parental rights.
Two more children were rescued — a 4-year-old girl and her 8-year-old brother. Their family had been threatened with the removal of the children for refusing to send them to a Russian school.
A 17-year-old boy was also returned. He narrowly avoided forced conscription into the Russian army, as he had already received a draft notice, and several of his classmates had already been enlisted despite their young age.
"I'm grateful to the Save Ukraine team and other partners for helping rescue these children. We are fulfilling the president's task — to bring all children back," said 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. These figures are approximate, and the actual number of abducted children may be higher.
At the same time, more than a thousand Ukrainian children have been successfully returned home.
The deportation of Ukrainian children was the reason for the International Criminal Court in The Hague to issue arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia's Commissioner for Children's Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova.
Additionally, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (the country's national parliament) has passed the draft law in the first reading to establish liability for the illegal transfer and use of children for military purposes by representatives of a foreign state.
