Ukraine returns six more children from occupied territories: Details
Photo: Return of children from occupied territories (Getty Images)
On Wednesday, October 23, six more Ukrainian children returned from the temporarily occupied territories of Kherson and Zaporizhia regions, as well as Crimea. They were brought back along with their mothers, according to the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Andrii Yermak.
Six children have returned from temporarily occupied territories as part of President Zelenskyy's BringKidsBack initiative. The children, aged between 3 and 17, experienced difficult trials during the occupation, including forced education in Russian schools, where a significant portion of the curriculum was filled with propaganda.
"In case of refusal, their parents were blackmailed with threats of losing parental rights, illegal searches, and interrogations. Some children had health problems but were unable to receive necessary treatment and medication," noted Andrii Yermak.
He also mentioned that one family had to hide to avoid being forced to attend a Russian school. The child continued their studies in a Ukrainian school online, living in constant fear of being discovered, which could lead to the child being taken away or the parents being arrested.
Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, stated that the families have been able to return to a safe environment where they receive the necessary support. Representatives in the Ivano-Frankivsk, Cherkasy, Lviv, and Zhytomyr regions are actively working with the families, assisting in their reintegration. The support includes finding temporary housing, processing documents, employment, and enrolling children in educational institutions.
Return of children from temporarily occupied territories (photo: Dmytro Lubinets)
Return of children from temporarily occupied territories (photo: Dmytro Lubinets)
Return of children from temporarily occupied territories (photo: Dmytro Lubinets)
Since 2014, Russia has deported tens of thousands of Ukrainian children. Ukrainian authorities have managed to identify 19,546 children who were illegally taken to Russia.
Earlier, RBC-Ukraine also reported that the authorities of the Sumy region decided to carry out a forced evacuation of children along with their families from 101 populated areas due to the escalation of the security situation. As part of the evacuation, it is planned to evacuate 497 children from 90 populated areas in the Sumy district and 11 populated areas in the Konotop district.
