Three Ukrainian children, their mother and two young people brought back from occupation

Another five children and young people have been successfully brought back from temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.

Source: Bring Kids Back UA, a Ukrainian government-led effort to bring Ukrainian children home from temporarily Russian-occupied territories

Details: Under occupation, the children were forced to accept Russian passports and sing the Russian national anthem at school, Bring Kids Back UA reported.

When the full-scale invasion began, brothers Ihor, Andrii and Dmytro (names changed) and their mother were living in their hometown, which was soon occupied by Russian forces. From then on the family lived under constant pressure and restrictions from the occupation authorities.

Andrii attended a kindergarten under occupation, while Dmytro was in the sixth grade at a local school. Their mother said the children were forced to sing the Russian national anthem there, and the curriculum contained Russian propaganda.

The family also faced forced "passportisation", with the occupation authorities demanding that the parents obtain Russian documents.

Experts from the Ukrainian Child Rights Network, working with The Humanity Funds, helped get the family out safely.

The boys and their mother are now in Ukrainian-controlled territory. They will be helped through the adaptation and reintegration processes and will return to the Ukrainian education system.

Two young people, Albina and Viacheslav, were brought back with the assistance of a team from Helping to Leave.

Albina lived in the temporarily occupied part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast and decided to leave for Ukrainian-controlled territory on her own. She planned her route herself and got as far as the Mokrany-Domanove checkpoint between Belarus and Ukraine, but she could not cross the border because she did not have a Ukrainian passport.

It was then that she contacted Helping to Leave. Volunteers advised her on the documents she needed and helped coordinate her onward route.

In Minsk, Albina obtained a certificate enabling her to return to Ukraine and was able to continue her journey. She is now with relatives in Ukrainian-controlled territory.

Viacheslav found out about Helping to Leave from a friend whom the team had previously helped leave the occupation. After he reached out, volunteers helped him plan his route and supported him during his departure.

On the way, Viacheslav also helped a friend by taking two of her cats with him. Upon arrival in Ukraine, Viacheslav was met by a team from Helping to Leave who helped him find temporary accommodation.

He is currently obtaining new documents and planning his future in Ukraine. The cats have been reunited with their owner too.

Background: Previously, we reported on how 23 children and teenagers who had endured constant pressure, threats and fear were brought back from occupation to Ukrainian-controlled territory.

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