Ukrainian marine Ruslan Kurtmallaiev freed from Russian captivity

After nearly four years in Russian captivity, Ukrainian marine Ruslan Kurtmallaiev has been freed. He and his brothers-in-arms were told to surrender to Russian forces by their own commander.

Source: Ruslan's wife Olha Kurtmallaieva, who has fought to bring her husband back despite having stage 4 cancer

Details: Ruslan served in the military before the full-scale Russian invasion. In early March 2022, he defended Mariupol alongside his brothers-in-arms at the Illich Iron and Steel Works and the Azovmash machine-building plant.

In April, 277 members of his unit were deceived and captured. Their commander said they were being redeployed, but in fact the defenders were transferred to the so-called Donetsk People's Republic.

Initially, criminal charges for desertion were opened against the servicemen, but these were later dropped. The head of the supply service, who convinced the commander to stop the defence, was charged with treason.

When Ruslan was captured, his wife Olha had stage 2 lymphoma, a malignant tumour of the lymphatic system. After leaving the occupied territory, she temporarily put her treatment on hold to focus on securing her husband's release.

The cancer progressed to stage 4 during this period.

Despite this, Olha took an active part in campaigns supporting prisoners of war and headed an organisation aiding marine families. The campaigners emphasised that their relatives had not surrendered voluntarily to the Russians.

During the two years of Ruslan's captivity, Olha received only one letter from him, which was just four lines long.

She learned from freed defenders who had been held with Ruslan that her husband had lost a lot of weight and suffered from a chronic illness that was causing complications. He nevertheless remained hopeful that he would be exchanged.

Olha continued her battle against cancer.

"I'm undergoing treatment, gritting my teeth when it hurts, trying not to feel sorry for myself. I just don't have time for that. I can't die now, because who would bring him back from captivity?" she said in February 2024.

Ruslan was freed in the first prisoner exchange in five months.

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