Themes by tag: occupation
Last week, 16 children were rescued from an occupied area as part of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative, which was launched by the President of Ukraine and carried out with the help of the Save Ukraine team.
- 17-year-old Milana had to wait for her mother, who was held captive in a basement for three days without food or water — simply because the girl’s father is a Ukrainian soldier. She endured searches, polygraph tests, and humiliation, and was threatened with being “dumped in the Dnipro River.” Milana lived in constant fear that her mother would disappear forever.
- 17-year-old Mark went to school and was registered for military conscription. After a “psychological test”, russian soldiers took him and some of his classmates to a military enlistment office without parental consent. The boy nearly became an orphan when a drone hit his parents’ car — they survived by a miracle.
- 2-year-old Solomiia also miraculously survived the occupation. When the girl woke up at night with a fever of 40°C, her mother, Olena, unable to call an ambulance, decided to drive her daughter to the hospital herself. However, russian soldiers refused to let their car cross the bridge, threatening to smash the windows. Olena then carried Solomiia across a pontoon bridge in the darkness.
- The family of 14-yearian Alina barely managed to flee the occupation in time to avoid being left homeless. The occupying authorities threatened to seize their apartment. They were initially refused passage at the checkpoint until the girl deleted all Ukrainian channels from her phone.
Today, they are all safe. They are undergoing rehabilitation, recovering documents, and receiving psychological support and assistance with housing. They now have a roof over their heads and ongoing support.
Journalists may speak with Save Ukraine representatives by prior arrangement.
With support from partners, the savED Charity Foundation has set up two underground educational spaces in the de-occupied city of Balakliia in the Kharkiv oblast. These spaces will enable hundreds of local children to participate offline in extracurricular activities within their community.
The first learning center, which spans over 110 square meters, is located in the bomb shelter of a lyceum in Balakliia. Since the start of the full-scale war, students at this institution have only been able to learn online. In spring 2025, russian UAVs struck the lyceum twice, damaging the roof and one wing of the building.
In 2023, the savED Charity Foundation, supported by U-Lead, created the Vulyk (Beehive) Educational Center to restore access to in-person after-school classes at the lyceum. There, students could participate in extracurricular activities with teachers. Thanks to KFC Ukraine’s charitable “Star Donation” campaign this year, the foundation was able to equip an additional underground space for lyceum students. The shelter now contains six classrooms and areas for sports, reading, dining, and relaxation. The project cost over 2.8 million hryvnia.
The SavED Foundation established a second underground educational space in Balakliia, in another city lyceum. The institution was damaged by russian airstrikes at the beginning of the full-scale invasion and looted by russian troops during the occupation. With the help of partners from tsukat IT company and Adobe, SavED was able to furnish a learning space in the lyceum’s shelter that can hold over a hundred students at once. The project cost over 390,000 hryvnia.
In partnership with IREX and with funding from U.S. taxpayers, the savED Charitable Foundation has opened modular, temporary learning spaces in the Pervomaiska and Shevchenkivska communities of the Mykolaiv oblast. This initiative will enable over 500 local children to resume in-person learning.
Throughout 2022, the Pervomaiska community — which received one of the temporary learning spaces — was on the frontline of combat and suffered significant destruction. Specifically, a russian attack destroyed a secondary school in one of its villages. In 2023, savED established an educational center called “Vulyk” (The Hive) in a local family medicine clinic, where students could participate in interactive extracurricular sessions with tutors. However, this was insufficient to restore full-scale education for the hundreds of children in the community. The new modular space will enable 220 local students to resume in-person schooling.
Shevchenkivska is the second community to receive a modular temporary learning space. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the community has been on the frontline, with some of its settlements enduring eight months of occupation.
The temporary learning spaces are barrier-free and child-friendly. Each of the six classrooms features high ceilings, comfortable furniture, tablets, and interactive multimedia panels. The facilities also include a large inclusive restroom, a teachers’ lounge, and a server room. The entrance is equipped with a ramp. Alternative power sources enable the spaces to operate fully during electricity outages.
It is worth noting that students in Bohdanivka, a village in the Kyiv oblast, where russians burned down the local school, students now study in a similar modular temporary learning space.
Background: Temporary learning spaces are built by benefactors using reliable modular structures in communities where schools have been damaged due to russian aggression or where the infrastructure needs to be expanded due to an increase in student enrollment, including internally displaced persons.
A presentation of the study “The deportation and forced displacement of Ukrainian children from occupied territories through the lens of changing russian propaganda narratives”, will be held at the Media Center Ukraine on September 11.
russia is systematically deporting Ukrainian children from occupied territories, depriving them of their national identity, family ties, and future. Meanwhile, the Kremlin is launching a large-scale propaganda campaign to justify or conceal these crimes.
The study demonstrates how russian narratives have evolved — from outright denial of deportations to attempts to portray them as “humanitarian aid” or “rescue missions”. The study focuses on the fate of children as tools of information warfare and the challenges faced by Ukrainian society and the international community.
During the event:
- The authors will present the study’s key findings;
- Experts will explain why russia uses children in propaganda;
- Participants will discuss strategies for shifting narratives and effectively countering disinformation.
Speakers include:
- Authors of the study;
- Representatives of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative;
- Experts in countering propaganda and disinformation.
Registration is required for the event.
Background: The study was conducted with financial support from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). The content of the publication reflects the authors’ views and does not necessarily represent NED’s position.
The meeting between the leaders of the two nations in Alaska made it clear that, despite hopes for Western support, Ukraine must develop its own strategy to ensure the country’s resilience amid constant threats from Russia. At the same time, broad international support and steadily increasing pressure on the aggressor remain crucial for successfully implementing such a strategy.
In light of this evolving context and new challenges, the Crimea Platform Expert Network has initiated the Fourth International Forum. During the event, leading Ukrainian and international experts, alongside government representatives, will analyze the current situation and develop recommendations for Ukraine and its international partners.
Forum participants include representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, international analytical centers, non-governmental organizations, independent experts, human rights defenders, and representatives from the diplomatic corps.
The Media Center Ukraine is the information partner of the forum.
The event will take place on August 28. Registration for the event is required. The location will be confirmed upon accreditation approval.
Organizers: The Crimea Platform Expert Network, with the support of the Office of the Crimea Platform, the Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People.
The Lavka Deokupatsii (De-occupation Shop), a volunteer initiative based in Kharkiv, offers vegetables and other goods cultivated by residents of the de-occupied territories in the Kharkiv region.
The project’s primary aim is to help revive local agriculture and foster economic self-sufficiency in the village of Studenok, located in the Izium district on the border of the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions. Studenok remained under russian occupation for more than three months, beginning on May 31, 2022. As part of the effort, the initiative provides residents with seeds, greenhouses, and assistance in marketing and selling their produce in Kharkiv.
Currently, two retail locations operate under the project, where customers can purchase cucumbers, green onions, young garlic, carrots, zucchini, new potatoes, and fresh honey sourced from farmers in the de-occupied areas. The stores also offer canned vegetables, jam, and cheeses from the village of Khotimlia, which has also been liberated.
Beyond local sales, the produce is regularly shipped to other parts of Ukraine, with items available at partner-run fairs. The project has also established partnerships with restaurants in Kharkiv and Kyiv.
This September, project co-founders Nataliia Artiushenko and Meriam Yol are scheduled to present the De-occupation Store at Young Chefs, an event in Kyiv that brings together chefs, restaurateurs, and culinary startups.
Journalists wishing to report from Kharkiv can schedule a visit in advance.
The De-occupation Shop is a project of the Volunterska Charitable Foundation.
Before the full-scale invasion, Capital Tours agency operated in Kyiv, Lviv, and Odesa, with Svitozar Moiseiv as one of its guides, showcasing the capital’s landmarks. After February 2022, the business came to a halt.
In 2023, Svitozar received requests from foreigners for tours of de-occupied areas near Kyiv. He developed a six-hour excursion through the region’s most affected towns, including Bucha, Irpin, Borodianka, Hostomel, and Moshchun. Svitozar primarily offers private tours. He begins by sharing his personal experiences from the early days of the full-scale invasion, then takes visitors to sites that bear witness to the occupiers’ crimes.
According to Svitozar, most participants are foreigners who came to Kyiv for work or family visits. So far, no one has traveled to Ukraine solely for this tour. The six-hour experience costs around €150, with part of the proceeds donated to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
You can arrange to speak with Svitozar Moiseiv — online or in person in Kyiv — by prior appointment.
Yevhen Neskreba, a champion kettlebell athlete, has experienced two forced relocations. Originally from a village in the Donetsk oblast near the front line, he moved to Volnovakha, 20 kilometers away, in 2017. There, he coached at a youth sports school, while still traveling home twice weekly to train local children. When the full-scale invasion began, Yevhen had to leave again — three days into the invasion, Volnovakha lost all utilities.
The day after he evacuated, Yevhen learned that his home in his village had been destroyed by russian shelling — along with his life’s work: six hundred medals and three hundred championship cups.
After finding out what had happened to his awards, Yevhen thought he would never lift weights again. The first training sessions in a rented apartment in Lutsk were difficult for the athlete. He went two weeks without touching a kettlebell, and tears came to his eyes during warm-ups as he remembered what he had lost.
After the evacuation, Yevhen participated in his first international competition in December 2022. He placed third. He now has 15 kettlebells that were given to him by fellow athletes. He managed to recover about 70% of his destroyed awards — though some remain irreplaceable.
You can contact Yevhen Neskreba online or in-person in Lutsk by arrangement.
Artem Yakovlev is both a serviceman and president of the Kherson regional club of traditional Okinawan Goju-ryu karate-do.
He signed a contract with the Defense Forces even before the full-scale invasion, inspired after one of his students enlisted.
Artem first saw combat in Donetsk oblast. Meanwhile, his karate club became a shelter for locals during occupation. Among those hiding there were eight conscripts from the Skadovsk garrison. Artem’s wife convinced russian occupiers they were merely athletes.
After Kherson’s liberation in fall 2023, Artem resumed training. He now teaches 18 students, holding sessions twice weekly – though he always confirms availability, as military duty sometimes interrupts.
You can contact Artem Yakovlev online or in-person in Kherson by prior arrangement.
Kariakin was just 17 when russian-backed forces seized his hometown of Kadiivka, formerly known as Stakhanov, in Ukraine’s Luhansk region in 2014. While most of the world’s attention had shifted elsewhere, Artem began documenting life under occupation on an anonymous Twitter account. He posted maps showing the location of russian forces, tracked their movements, and shared dispatches from behind enemy lines. Eventually, his work caught the attention of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and he began secretly collaborating with the military.
For years, Kariakin led a double life. He avoided friendships, shut himself off from romance, and trusted no one. “Anyone could report me to the occupiers,” he said.
The losses mounted. In 2020, his mother passed away. The following year, he lost both his grandmother and father. With his immediate family gone, Artem moved to Kyiv, hoping for a fresh start. But his time in the capital was short-lived. When russia unleashed an all-out invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Kariakin joined the Territorial Defense Forces just weeks later. By June, he was fighting near Bakhmut, one of the war’s fiercest battlegrounds.
Now serving officially in Ukraine’s military, Artem continues gathering intelligence from occupied territories, a task he once carried out in secret. He receives data from spotters and artillery correctors working in the field. critical information that helps the Armed Forces target russian positions.
In February 2023, after nine years of resistance, Kariakin made a bold decision: he revealed his identity publicly on social media. With that move, he launched a new campaign #FreeCivilResistance aimed at drawing attention to Ukrainian civilians imprisoned by russian forces. He added that this cause is deeply personal to him because he knows people who have been thrown into russian prisons.
Artem Kariakin remains stationed near the front lines and continues to serve actively. He is available to speak with journalists, online and in person by prior arrangement.
