Ukrainian children reunited with families after being trapped for months
They were supposed to be having fun in summer camp for two weeks, but instead, at least 31 Ukrainian kids were snatched and held for months in Russian-occupied territories.
Dozens of Ukrainian children were tearfully reunited with their families this weekend after enduring harsh separation during the Russian invasion of their home country.
“We went to the summer camp for two weeks but we got stuck there for six months,” Bogdan, 13, said as he hugged his mother, according to CNN. “I cried when I saw my mom from the bus. I’m very happy to be back.”
The reunification was engineered by the humanitarian group Save Ukraine.
The children were among thousands of kids who have allegedly been held by Russia since the brutal invasion was launched over a year ago, a report found in February. The Russian government has been accused of operating a broad network of dozens of camps populated with snatched children, which the United Nations has deemed a war crime.
Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia’s human rights commissioner, has told the U.N. that thousands of deported kids have been taken for their own safety even as a warrant was issued for her arrest on war crimes charges. The warrant also applies to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Lvova-Belova tried to address an informal U.N. Security Council meeting last week, but several diplomats walked out while other countries showed their disdain by sending low-level officials. She claimed the children had been taken for their own safety. Russia is currently taking its turn chairing the Security Council.
Early on in the invasion, which began Feb. 24, 2022, the Ukrainian government said at least 70 children had been killed. That was March of last year.
Last month, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Lvova-Belova and Putin, accusing them of abducting children from Ukraine.
Lovova-Belova’s involvement in the abductions has been documented, along with Russian attempts to put the kids up for adoption. Ukraine claims that at least 19,500 Ukrainian children have been seized from families or orphanages since the war began and forcibly deported from their home country. Russia’s estimate is far lower.
With News Wire Services
