Themes by tag: prisoners

For over three years, Oleksandra waited for her father, a soldier held in russian captivity. All that time, the young woman searched for any scraps of information — reaching out to relatives of freed POWs, making posts on social media — but mostly, she was met with silence.

On June 19, 2025, Oleksandra received the news she had longed for: her father had been freed from captivity and returned to Ukraine. After that, she decided to support others still searching for their loved ones and waiting for prisoner exchanges. With her father’s permission, she made a social media post asking people to send her photos of their relatives in captivity. She shows these pictures to her father, and he tries to recall whether he saw these people while imprisoned.

Oleksandra receives hundreds of messages with photos. The freed defender often asks for the person’s date of birth, as in captivity, everyone begins to look alike. In just two weeks, Oleksandra’s father managed to recognize three people. Of course, the information may not always be accurate.

Oleksandra helps others without expecting anything in return because she understands the pain of waiting for a loved one to return from captivity.

You can speak with Oleksandra online or in person in Kyiv, by prior arrangement.

• military
• prisoners
• women
• Kyiv

Mykyta Shastun joined the military several years before the full-scale invasion. He served in the 56th Brigade, fought on the outskirts of Donetsk Airport, and trained to become a sergeant.

After the full-scale invasion began, he and his brother Ihor joined the Azov Regiment to defend Mariupol. On April 1, his brother was killed. In May 2022, Mykyta and his comrades were ordered to lay down their weapons and surrender.

He ended up in the Olenivka colony in the occupied Donetsk oblast. He recalls extreme hardship: prisoners starving due to a lack of food and water. Soon, the Azov fighters were moved to another barracks where an explosion rocked the facility at night. Miraculously, Mykyta survived with only a concussion. He helped wounded comrades, though the russians provided no medical aid. He was then transferred from Olenivka to Taganrog, russia, before finally returning to Ukraine on December 31, 2022.

Journalists can contact Mykyta Shastun online by prior arrangement.

Background: The defense of Mariupol lasted 86 days, 82 of which were in complete encirclement. From May 16 to 20, 2022, the Mariupol garrison received orders to cease defending the city and surrender.

On the night of July 29, 2022, russia committed a terrorist act blowing up the Olenivka penal colony barracks holding Ukrainian POWs. At least 50 defenders of Azovstal were killed, and more than a hundred were injured.

• casualties
• military
• prisoners
• russian crimes

On July 19, Kyiv will host a public rally “Abandoned in Captivity. Four Years of Official Indifference,” focusing on the issue of Ukrainian civilians who remain illegally detained in temporarily occupied territories and in the russian federation.

The rally aims to draw the attention of the public, the media, and government officials to the glaring absence of a state policy on returning civilian prisoners and the lack of action to establish a mechanism for searching for, accounting for, and releasing abducted Ukrainian citizens.

Program highlights:

• Art installation and choreographic performance reflecting the experience of civilians in captivity;
• Speeches by relatives of the captives and representatives of the NGO “Civilians in Captivity”;
• Public address to the authorities;
• Speeches by activists, artists, and human rights defenders;
• Announcement of demands to the Ukrainian government;
• Final call to action.

Accreditation is required to attend the event.

• prisoners
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Peaceful gatherings will take place in 28 cities across Ukraine to raise awareness about the defenders of Azovstal and other soldiers who remain in enemy captivity.

On July 12, rallies will be held in Arbuzynka, Pavlohrad, Vinnytsia, Chernihiv, Irpin, Dnipro, Lviv, Odesa, and Poltava.

Events on July 13 are scheduled for Kyiv, Korop, Pivdenoukrainsk, Krolevets, Lozova, Uman, Mykolaiv, Ovruch, Korosten, Cherkasy, Rivne, Kremenchuk, Obukhiv, Dolynska, Berdychiv, Kropyvnytskyi, Shostka, Chernivtsi, and Slavuta.

The rallies are organized by families of prisoners of war from the Mariupol garrison. Ukrainians who have been freed from captivity often take part in the events.

• prisoners

Anna met Oleh in 2020, while he was already serving in the Azov Brigade. Their connection began through phone calls and messages and gradually developed into a serious relationship. The couple’s daughter was born shortly before the start of the full-scale war. Oleh served in the Azov Brigade alongside his twin brother, Vitalii. From the earliest days of russia’s invasion, both took part in the defense of Mariupol.

In April 2022, the brothers were part of a group attempting to break through to Azovstal when they came under heavy fire. Vitalii was killed, while Oleh was wounded but managed to reach the steel plant. A month later, he was taken captive.

On the night of July 28-29, 2022, Oleh and 192 fellow prisoners were being held in Penal Colony No. 120 in Volnovakha, also known as Olenivka. That night, several explosions struck the facility. More than 50 members of the Azov Brigade were killed and over 100 were injured. When russian media released lists of the dead and wounded, Anna found her husband’s name on both.

It was later confirmed that Oleh had survived.

Since then, Anna has fought tirelessly to bring him home. She joined the Olenivka Community NGO, which advocates for the release of Ukrainian prisoners of war. The group recently appealed to Ukrainian authorities to consider exchanging the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) leader Metropolitan Onufriy for the seriously wounded Azov fighters who survived the Olenivka attack.

Anna believes this may be a real chance to secure the release of all 49 severely wounded soldiers still in captivity.

Anna Lobova is available for online interviews with journalists by prior arrangement.

• prisoners
• women

Yevhenii Kravchuk was mobilized at the onset of russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine. His wife, Anastasiia, initially joined the war effort as a volunteer before enlisting in the army as a combat medic. In June 2022, Yevhenii’s unit was encircled in the Luhansk region, and he was taken captive along with his fellow soldiers. He would spend nearly three years in russian captivity.

Yevhenii recalls how the Ukrainian prisoners endured daily torture, beatings with truncheons, starvation, and electric shocks. The one thing that helped him hold on was the belief that Anastasiia was waiting for him. One day, russian forces told him that she had been killed. But he refused to accept it. The russians, he said, constantly lied to prisoners in an effort to break their spirit.

In February 2025, Yevhenii was finally released. Back in Ukraine, he learned the truth, Anastasiia had been killed in action in the Pokrovsk sector in October 2024.

Yevhenii is now undergoing rehabilitation. He has launched a blog where he shares his journey, including his recovery and day-to-day life after captivity.

Interviews with Yevhenii Kravchuk can be arranged online or in person in Kyiv by appointment.

• military
• prisoners
• Kyiv

Peaceful events are planned in 31 cities across Ukraine to raise awareness of the defenders of Azovstal and other soldiers still in enemy captivity.

On July 5, rallies will be held in Arbuzinka, Svitlovodsk, Okhtyrka, Pavlohrad, Bila Tserkva, Voznesensk, Vinnytsia, Chernihiv, Odesa, Dnipro, and Lviv.

On July 6, events are planned in Kyiv, Pivdennoukrainsk, Krolevets, Lozova, Izium, Mykolaiv, Korop, Ovruch, Slavuta, Korosten, Cherkasy, Korostyshiv, Kharkiv, Obukhiv, Dolynska, Berdychiv, Kropyvnytskyi, Shostka, Chernivtsi, and Uzhhorod. 

The events are organized by the families of POWs from the Mariupol garrison. The rallies are often attended by Ukrainians who have been released from captivity.

• prisoners

Anastasiia and Andrii Ordynskyi shared 12 years of marriage and were raising their daughter Miia together.

Andrii began his military service in 2012, signing a contract in Sevastopol a year later. After russia’s occupation of Crimea, he left the peninsula with his unit and later joined the 36th Marine Brigade in Mykolaiv. When the full-scale invasion began, Andrii was stationed near Mariupol. On April 12, 2022, during their last video call, Andrii told Anastasiia to search for him among the prisoners of war or the fallen – there was no way out of the encirclement.

On May 1 of that year, Anastasiia spotted her husband in a video of captured Ukrainian soldiers. For the next three years, she did everything possible to bring him home: connecting with other POW families, former captives, and organizations dedicated to prisoners’ welfare. She even underwent training to prepare for Andrii’s return. Her perseverance paid off – Andrii was finally freed in a prisoner exchange on May 23, 2025. He is now undergoing treatment and rehabilitation after his ordeal in captivity.

You can speak with Anastasiia Ordynska online or meet her in Dnipropetrovsk oblast by prior arrangement.

• prisoners
• Dnipro

Peaceful rallies in support of Ukrainian prisoners of war and missing persons will take place across the country on June 28 and 29, as families and supporters call for greater attention to the plight of those still held in russian captivity.

Events are planned in 31 cities to honor the defenders of Azovstal and other Ukrainian service members who remain unaccounted for.

On June 28, gatherings will be held in Arbuzynka, Okhtyrka, Pavlohrad, Vinnytsia, Chernihiv, Pavlysh, Irpin, Zhytomyr, Poltava, Dnipro and Lviv.

On June 29, events are scheduled in Kyiv, Pivdennoukrainsk, Uman, Lozova, Mykolaiv, Krolevets, Ovruch, Korosten, Cherkasy, Obukhiv, Dolynska, Rivne, Berdychiv, Kropyvnytskyi, Ostroh, Shostka, Chernivtsi, Uzhhorod, Slavuta, and Odesa.

The actions are organized by families of prisoners of war from the Mariupol garrison. Ukrainians who have returned from russian captivity often join and speak at the events.

• prisoners

YOUkraine Hub is a support space for military personnel released from captivity, initiated by former prisoners of war themselves. It hosts meetings and peer-to-peer support sessions built on trust and mutual understanding. The goal is to create a safe environment and assist our Heroes in adapting to civilian life.

The hub provides free services, including medical, legal, social, and psychological support, as well as organizing off-site events.

YOUkraine Hub invites foreign media to collaborate in order to draw the international community’s attention to the severe physical and psychological consequences of captivity, and the need for systemic support for soldiers who have already been liberated. The hub also aims to raise global awareness of the ongoing situation and help free those still held captive.

Journalists can arrange to speak with hub representatives in Kyiv and, when possible, with defenders who have returned from captivity.

• military
• prisoners
• Kyiv