'Seventh heaven': Tears and laughter as Ukrainian POWs return
Waxy and emaciated, Konstantin Steblev spoke to his mother for the first time in three years after being released as part of the biggest ever prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine.
"Hello mum, how are you?," the 31-year-old soldier said, moments after stepping back onto Ukrainian soil on Friday.
"I love you. Don't be sad. It wasn't my fault. I promised I would come back safe and sound," he said, smiling but with watery eyes.
Steblev, who was captured at the start of Russia's invasion, was one of 390 military and civilian prisoners released in exchange for 390 sent back to Russia.
More swaps are expected on Saturday and Sunday to bring the total to 1,000 for 1,000 as agreed in talks between Russia and Ukraine in Istanbul last week.
Steblev arrived with the other former captives by coach at a local hospital where hundreds of relatives were waiting, shouting, crying and singing "Congratulations!"
During the journey back to Ukraine, Steblev told AFP he experienced "indescribable" emotions.
"It's simply crazy. Crazy feelings," he said.
- 'In seventh heaven' -
During his years of captivity, Steblev said he managed to keep going thanks to his wife.
"She knows I am strong and that I am not going to give up just like that," he said, adding that now he just wants to be with his family.
"It's my absolute priority," he said.
After that, he said it would be up to his wife to decide on the next steps.
"She will tell me and will show me how to act in future," he said.
Thin, tired and looking slightly lost, the freshly released prisoners filed into a local hospital for medical checks.
But Olena and Oleksandr stayed outside, locked in a tight embrace despite the cameras pointed at them.
They said they had not seen each other in 22 months since Oleksandr was captured by Russia.
"I am in seventh heaven," the 45-year-old said in his wife's arms.
He said his dream now was to "eat... eat and spend time with my family".
- 'They did not break him' -
As the buses arrived at the hospital, relatives of soldiers who are still in prison ran towards the freed men to show them images of their loved ones and ask if they had seen them during their captivity.
Some women walked away crying when they failed to get any news.
Some know that their relatives are jailed but others have no news at all and desperately hope for any scrap of information.
Moments after being reunited with her husband Andriy after three years apart, Elia, 33, embraced the tearful mother of a soldier who had no news about her son.
When she saw her husband, Elia said her "heart was beating out of my chest" and she cried with joy.
"I have been waiting so long for this," she said.
Several former prisoners of war interviewed by AFP in the past have spoken of harsh conditions and torture in Russian prisons.
Elia is now thinking about the future and about having a child with her husband.
But she said she knew that the path to rehabilitation would be a long one for him.
"He has an empty stare but I know they did not break him. The guys with him told me he was very strong," she said.
fv/dt/js
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Washington Post
5 hours ago
- Washington Post
Miss Manners: Spare party guests the ‘life story' video
Dear Miss Manners: We've been invited to a combination multi-graduate/Father's Day gathering at an in-law's house. The hosts suggested it in order to honor all the fathers in the family, as well as the three graduates: my husband from grad school, our son from high school and the hosts' daughter from high school. Our in-laws have offered to provide all the food and beverages.
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
Mother-in-Law Offers to Pay for IVF, but Woman Is Worried About the 'Strings Attached'
A woman says that her mother-in-law is offering to pay for in vitro fertilization, a procedure she acknowledges is "undeniably expensive" But if she accepts, she's worried she will owe her mother-in-law Now, she's taking to Reddit to seek adviceA woman says that her mother-in-law is offering to pay for in vitro fertilization, but she's worried about accepting for fear of what will be expected in return. In a post shared to Reddit, she writes: "My partner and I married later in life, and now, in our 40s, we're trying to conceive. We're currently considering IVF. Financially, we're doing fine and live comfortably on our earnings, but IVF is undeniably expensive." "My husband suggested that we might need to ask his mother for financial help to support our IVF journey," she continues. "My immediate response was an absolute NO." While her husband believes she's "being too prideful by refusing help," the woman notes her relationship with his mother is tenuous at best. "Here's some context: My MIL has been difficult from the start," she writes in the post. "She's treated me like a rival for her son's love and attention. I didn't even have the wedding I wanted because I knew she'd make it about her. She still financially supports my husband's siblings with big purchases—cars, houses—you name it. But it's always with strings attached. Money is her tool for control." The woman adds that she has "worked hard to establish boundaries" and has long "maintained low contact." Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. "My gut tells me that accepting her money will come at a cost—emotional, psychological, and possibly even parental," she writes. "I fear she'll see it as buying access to our IVF journey and future child. I can already imagine her insisting on updates, knowing the details of every success or failure, the due date, the gender—things that should be private between my partner and me." Now, she's seeking input from the internet, asking: "Am I wrong to refuse financial help, knowing it might limit the number of IVF cycles we can afford, and possibly reduce our chances of becoming parents? Or am I right to draw a firm boundary now—to protect my future nuclear family from interference and control?" Other Reddit users are advising the woman not to accept the financial help. "She absolutely will use this for control at some point. If you have the funds for IVF yourself then it's a no-brainer," wrote one commenter. Added another: "She's going to think it's her baby if she helps financially." Read the original article on People
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Yahoo
"He hates Russians like all of us": story of combat dog who saved Ukrainian defenders from Russian attack
A combat dog named Rick, raised among Ukrainian defenders, now serves alongside his owner in the Ukrainian Armed Forces. On one occasion, Rick alerted his owner's brothers-in-arms of an incoming Russian bombardment, saving their lives. Source: 41st Separate Mechanised Brigade of the Ukrainian defence forces on Facebook Details: The dog's owner – a serviceman who goes by the alias Zhaba (Toad) – was in Poland when the full-scale invasion began but decided to return to Ukraine and defend his country. Zhaba says he joined the military in late 2022. In the Ukrainian Armed Forces, he serves as a driver and has at times assisted with the medical evacuation of Ukrainian defenders in the Serebrianka Forest in Donetsk Oblast. A dog handler he knew gave the defender a three-month-old shepherd puppy named Rick. Since then, the loyal companion has stayed by Zhaba's side through intense battles in Donetsk and Sumy oblasts. They also took part in the Kursk operation together. "I was driving the lads out, and he [Rick – ed.] was sitting in the basement with the guys, safe," Zhaba says. Rick grew up around military personnel, so the sounds of bombardments are familiar to him. His owner says the dog can sense when rockets are launched and mortars are fired. "He feels everything, knows everything. He hates the Russians, like all of us," shares Zhaba. Once, in Toretsk, Donetsk Oblast, Rick saved his owner's comrades from an attack by a Russian Uragan multiple-launch rocket system. That day, the loyal dog sensed the danger early and warned the defenders. "He just heard the whistle before our lads and barked. So everyone went down to the cellar. So he saved our brothers-in-arms," the dog owner shared. Zhaba says that he now takes the pet less to carry out missions after he was targeted by a first-person view drone in Russia's Kursk Oblast. "I said I wouldn't take him with me again and risk it. He is a friend, a brother-in-arms. Almost a son, but in a dog's likeness," Zhaba jokes. Background: Earlier, Ukrainska Pravda reported that Ukrainian National Guard officers from a K9 unit in Mykolaiv, located in Ukraine's south, had completed training in providing essential veterinary and medical care to service dogs. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
