Five Ukrainian children returned from Russia and occupied territories. VIDEO+PHOTOS
Five more Ukrainian children have been returned from Russian-occupied territories and Russia thanks to the active efforts of the Ombudsman's Office team, as part of the Ukrainian President's Bring Kids Back Ua initiative and with the involvement of the Save Ukraine public organisation.
This was reported bythe Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets, according to Censor.NET.
What is known?
"Thanks to our persistent work, children aged 4 to 15 are home!" he wrote.
Children's stories
- The returned seven-year-old boy had been staying at the Kherson baby home, from where the Russians deported him during the occupation of the city. But his mother fought for the child’s return and appealed to the Ombudsman’s Office; now the closest people are together again.
- A similar family separation was experienced by a four-year-old little brother and a six-year-old little sister. The occupiers also abducted them from the Kherson baby home. For four years, the children were in deportation and did not see their mother. The woman last hugged her children when they were effectively still infants! Today they are together again.
- Another story is that of a nine-year-old boy. He ended up with his mother in Russia, where the woman died of a serious illness. The child was initially sought by his grandfather, but he did not succeed. Today the boy will reunite with another close relative — his uncle.
Efforts to bring Ukrainian children back
According to Lubinets, a total of 1,985 children have been back home since the start of the full-scale invasion.
He emphasized that the Ombudsman’s Office is directly involved in a number of processes related to the return of children — from communicating with relatives to directly meeting minors at the border.
The ombudsman also thanked the First Lady of the United States of America, Melania Trump, for humanitarian support for Ukraine’s initiatives on the issue of returning children.
