12 Ukrainians, including Bakhmut defenders, return home from russian captivity
Фото: Координаційний штаб з питань поводження з військовополоненими
Ukraine returned another 12 people from captivity: 10 military and two civilians. Among them are five seriously injured.
The Coordinating Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War reported this.
Ten servicepersons of sergeant and soldier ranks were taken captive in the battles around Bakhmut, Opytne, and Orikhovo–Vasylivka in the Donetsk region and near Kreminna and Chervonopivka in the Luhansk region.
Photo: Coordinating Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War
Photo: Coordinating Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War
Photo: Coordinating Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War
All defenders are servicepersons of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, namely from the 518th separate special purpose battalion, the 25th Sicheslav separate airborne brigade, the 95th separate airborne assault brigade, the 93rd "Kholodny Yar" separate mechanized brigade, the 56th separate motorized infantry brigade of Mariupol and the 57th separate rifle battalion.
russians held two civilians from the village of Lyptsi, Kharkiv region and Mariupol as hostages.
The coordination headquarters said that on March 24, Ukraine voluntarily and without any conditions returned all five seriously wounded prisoners who could be transported to russia. This meets the requirements of international humanitarian law. At the same time, in response, russia released only five seriously wounded Ukrainians, not all of them, as required by international conventions, the headquarters emphasizes.
"This eloquently demonstrates the enemy's reluctance to adhere to the Geneva Conventions, unjustified cruelty towards the seriously wounded, and a blatant lack of interest in establishing further exchanges for particularly vulnerable categories of prisoners and civilian hostages," the coordination headquarters mentioned in a statement.
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In December, russia confirmed that it is holding 3,392 Ukrainian soldiers in captivity, Alyona Verbytska, the representative of the President of Ukraine on issues of ensuring the rights of defenders, said. At the same time, approximately 15,000 people are considered missing in Ukraine, including many civilians.
The official said that it is not known what happened to the missing persons – whether they are in captivity, taken out of the occupied territories, or whether they were killed.
After that, some prisoners were returned. For example, on February 16, another 101 people (including 100 military personnel) were returned home; on March 7, another 130 military personnel were released.
The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said that since the beginning of the large-scale invasion and as of April 3, 2,005 Ukrainians have already been released from captivity.
In November, a law guaranteeing social and legal protection for citizens held captive by the occupiers came into force in Ukraine. In particular, citizens who were in captivity are subject to mandatory state pension insurance.
