Latest news with #DariaZarivna
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
11 more Ukrainian Children rescued from Russian-occupied territories, Yermak's advisor says
Eleven more Ukrainian children have been successfully returned from Russian-occupied territories as part of the national "Bring Kids Back UA" initiative, Daria Zarivna, an advisor to President Volodymyr Zelensky's chief of staff and head of the project, said on May 28. Among those rescued is a young girl whose mother and brother, both defenders of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, spent more than three years in Russian captivity. "All this time, the mother did not know whether she would ever see her children again. During the exchange, she met her son on the bus, and today she was finally able to hug her little girl," Zarivna said. Another boy was reunited with his father and brother, both Ukrainian soldiers. The father has been serving on the front lines, while the brother had also been held in Russian captivity for over three years. Zarivna also said a teenage boy who had been orphaned was rescued from Russian forces. The child had been kidnapped from his school, held in a basement, tortured, and nearly conscripted into the Russian army days before his 18th birthday. The operation is the latest in a series of rescue missions under Bring Kids Back UA, a national initiative launched by Zelensky to coordinate the return of children abducted during Russia's full-scale invasion. On May 22, Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak announced the return of nine other children from occupied areas. He described the children as survivors of grave abuse, including a girl whose life was endangered due to lack of medical care, and a boy who was imprisoned in a basement with his mother while Russian forces tortured his father nearby. Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, Ukraine has identified over 19,500 children who were forcibly deported to Russia, Belarus, or Russian-occupied territories. To date, only around 1,300 have been returned to Ukrainian-controlled areas, according to official data. The abduction of Ukrainian children has drawn international condemnation. In March 2023, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, accusing them of overseeing the forced deportations. Earlier this month, the European Parliament passed a resolution labeling Russia's actions a "genocidal strategy" aimed at erasing Ukrainian identity, and demanded the unconditional return of all abducted minors. On May 21, U.S. senators have introduced a resolution urging that no peace deal with Russia be made until all abducted Ukrainian children are returned. The resolution condemns Russia's forced deportation and Russification of Ukrainian minors as an attempt to erase Ukrainian identity. Kyiv has maintained that the safe return of its children remains a central precondition for any future peace negotiations with Russia. Read also: Because of Russia, my child understood fear early We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Four-year-old girl reunited with father after evacuation from Russian-occupied territory
Ukrainian human rights activists have assisted a four-year-old girl in evacuating from temporarily Russian-occupied territory and reuniting with her father. The child had been living in a city captured by Russia since the start of the full-scale war, where she remained with her grandmother despite her father's persistent but unsuccessful efforts to evacuate them. Source: Daria Zarivna, Chief Operating Officer of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative Quote: "Little Marichka was only one year old when the full-scale war began. She was with her grandmother in a city that came under Russian occupation during the first days of the invasion. Her childhood, which should have been the happiest time in her life, turned into a nightmare due to the lack of water and electricity, constant shelling and the threat of deportation by the occupation authorities." Details:The child's father, who was on territory controlled by Ukraine, had tried to arrange evacuation himself for a long time, but to no avail. "Eventually, he reached out to the Ukrainian Child Rights Network, which helped organise a safe route and accompanied the child until she was reunited with her father," Zarivna noted. As of March 2025, a total of 1,247 children have been brought back to Ukraine. At the same time, at least 1.6 million children are still living under Russian occupation. Background: Earlier, it was reported that a 16-year-old Ukrainian teenager had been abducted by Russian forces from Kherson and sent to a so-called "re-education camp". The boy openly resisted and at one point took down the Russian flag from a flagpole and replaced it with his underwear. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukraine brings back 7 children from occupied territories, Russia
Seven Ukrainian children have been returned home under the President of Ukraine's initiative, Bring Kids Back UA, according to Daria Zarivna, Director of the initiative and advisor to the Head of the Office of the President. The children had been residing in the Russian-occupied territories and Russia itself. Since February 2022, at least 20,000 Ukrainian children have been abducted from Russian-occupied areas and transferred to other Russian-controlled territories or to Russia, according to the Ukrainian national database, "Children of War." Among the returned children is a boy who, along with his parents, lived under occupation for an extended period, Zarivna wrote on March 3. "He endured forced passportization, psychological pressure at school, and a constant fear for his future," she added. "In an effort to provide him with the opportunity for an education in a free country, his parents decided to bring him to Ukrainian-controlled territory." Ukraine considers the abduction of these children a war crime and argues that these actions meet the U.N.'s legal definition of genocide. Russia, however, claims that the children are being relocated for their protection from conflict zones. Ukrainian authorities, including Children's Ombudswoman Daria Herasymchuk, estimate that up to 300,000 children have been unlawfully deported, while the figure put forth by Lubinets, the Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner, stands at 150,000. The Ukrainian government has managed to return 1,233 children so far, according to the Ministry of Reintegration. In March 2023, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Children's Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, citing their involvement in the unlawful transfer of Ukrainian children. Russia dismissed the ICC's decision as "outrageous and unacceptable." Read also: Russia seized boats, harassed volunteers, concealed gravesites ― Kakhovka Dam explosion investigation We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
