A 12-year-old boy has been successfully returned to Ukraine after spending 18 months in occupied territory and 4 months in Russia, Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets announced on Telegram on Dec. 22.
The child was visiting his father in Luhansk Oblast prior to Russia’s full-scale invasion and could not return home after Feb. 24. 2022.
“The child’s mother, being a servicewoman of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, could not independently retrieve her 12-year-old son,” Lubinets wrote.
”Therefore, she turned to us with a request for help in returning her son.”
The boy was forced to study in a Russian school while in Russia, according to Lubinets.
Read also: Russia prepares new lists of Ukrainian children for deportation, says NRC
“The Ombudsman’s Office developed a rescue strategy, taking care of logistics, security, and other aspects,” stated Lubinets.
“It wasn’t easy, but the result is worth it: the boy is home!”
On March 17, the International Criminal Court in The Hague issued an arrest warrant for Russian dictator Vladimir Putin on charges of committing war crimes in connection with the abduction of Ukrainian children to Russia.
Read also: Three more Ukrainian kids abducted by Russia reunited with their families
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted a resolution recognizing the forced transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia as genocide on April 27.
On Nov. 27, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe reported that it had set up a special committee on the violation of the rights of Ukrainian children by Russians.
First Lady Olena Zelenska reported that Ukraine had managed the return of 387 children – out of nearly 20,000 abducted by Russians – via third countries on Dec. 9.
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