Ukraine's ombudsman reveals who is hardest to bring back from Russian captivity
Photo: Dmytro Lubinets (Getty Images)
Russia is holding nearly 1,900 confirmed Ukrainian civilians in its prisons, but the real number of abducted civilians may be as high as 16,000. Securing their return is the most difficult part of the prisoner exchange process, stated Ukraine's Human Rights Commissioner, Dmytro Lubinets.
According to the ombudsman, Ukraine has so far verified 1,878 civilian hostages. Of those, only 892 have been officially confirmed through the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Information about other captives is obtained through intelligence agencies, security services, and testimony from military personnel who return from captivity. Russian forces often hold civilians and prisoners of war in the same cells.
At the same time, Ukraine's register of persons missing under special circumstances contains about 16,000 civilians. It is currently unknown whether these people are alive or under what status they are being held.
Why civilians are difficult to bring back
Lubinets stressed that Russia follows no rules in this regard. Russian authorities conceal abducted civilians, do not officially acknowledge their detention, and hold Ukrainians in isolation across dozens of detention centers and penal colonies.
According to him, there are many cases in which people have been imprisoned since 2022 without any criminal charges being brought against them.
In addition, Russia often attempts to classify civilians as prisoners of war. In this way, Moscow seeks to increase its pool of exchange candidates and put additional pressure on Ukraine.
Ukraine and Russia today carried out the third stage of the 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner exchange. Under the exchange, 160 Ukrainians who had been held in captivity since 2022 were able to return home.
The previous, second stage of the 1,000-for-1,000 exchange took place on June 5. At that time, 185 military personnel and one civilian were returned from Russian captivity.
