Themes by tag: russian crimes
Dmytro Khilyuk, a Ukrainian journalist with 20 years of experience and a correspondent for the UNIAN news agency, has endured over three years of captivity at the hands of the russians as a civilian hostage.
In early March 2022, russian occupiers abducted Khilyuk and his father from a street in Kozarovychi, a village in the Kyiv oblast where the family lived. His father was later released, but Dmytro was taken first to Belarus and then to russia.
He was initially held in SIZO-2 (Pre-Trial Detention Center No. 2) in Novozybkov in the Bryansk region. In an interview, Dmytro recounted that, during the so-called “intake process”, detainees were severely beaten with batons and fists, thrown to the ground, and attacked by dogs. In May 2023, he was transferred to a prison in Pakino in the Vladimir region, where he remained until his liberation.
In total, Dmytro Khilyuk spent 3 years, 5 months, and 21 days in russian captivity. He finally returned home on August 24, 2025, during a prisoner exchange coinciding with Ukraine’s Independence Day.
By prior arrangement, journalists have the opportunity to speak with Dmytro in Kyiv or in online format.
TEAHOUSE, a Ukrainian tea producer operating since 2006, is rebuilding after a russian drone strike destroyed its facility in Dnipro in July. The attack wiped out about 100 tons of raw materials, workshops, and equipment.
Despite the loss, the company quickly found a new space and resumed production. It has since become the first business in Ukraine to receive a state grant for reconstruction.
On October 11-12, TEAHOUSE will host the Autumn Kyiv Tea Festival 2025, an especially meaningful event for the team, marking both resilience and renewal after the attack.
Journalists will be able to speak with company representatives and learn more about TEAHOUSE’s recovery efforts during the festival in Kyiv.
The project “War Crimes in Crimea” aims to explain in simple terms what war crimes are, which actions by the occupiers fall under this category, and how victims can protect their rights.
Key topics:
– Main types of crimes recorded in the temporarily occupied territory (deportation, violations of property rights, forced mobilization);
– Action algorithm for citizens who have faced persecution: where to apply, how to preserve evidence, and what compensation possibilities exist;
– Activities of the autonomous republic’s law enforcement agencies in documenting crimes committed by the occupation authorities and responding to citizens’ appeals;
– Information dissemination formats: video clips, social advertising, informational materials, and public reception offices;
– The role of applicants in international processes to hold perpetrators accountable.
Participants:
– Olha Kuryshko, Permanent Representative of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea;
– Vitalii Sekretar, First Deputy Head of the Prosecutor’s Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol;
– Akhtem Seitablayev, Director of the State Enterprise “Crimean House”.
Oleksandr Shvetsov, a Ukrainian army veteran who lost a leg in combat and later his home to russian shelling, has given away money raised for his recovery to help neighbors left with nothing.
Shvetsov has been serving since 2014. He was seriously wounded near Luhansk, where he lost his leg. After returning from the front, he went through a personal crisis, struggling to adapt to life with a prosthetic, refusing rehabilitation, and turning to alcohol and drugs. Over time, he overcame those struggles, broke free from addiction, and, after time abroad, learned to manage severe panic attacks.
Driven to help others, he started the “Hero Bus” initiative, which gave dozens of fellow veterans the chance to travel to France and Poland.
On the night of Sept. 10, 2025, a russian strike hit his home and car in Ukraine’s Zhytomyr region. A rocket landed just 20 meters from the house, heavily damaging the property but sparing his life. He managed to escape unharmed and saved his animals.
After sharing photos of the destruction online and appealing for help, Shvetsov received more than one million hryvnias in donations within two days. Instead of using the money to rebuild his place, he gave it all to neighbors whose homes were destroyed in the same attack and had received no help.
Shvetsov is available for interviews, either online or in person in Zhytomyr, by prior arrangement.
On September 26, the Media Center Ukraine will host the presentation of an analytical report: “How russia is erasing Ukrainian identity under the guise of fighting extremism”.
Participants:
– Mariia Krasnenko, report author, expert at the Centre of Civil Education Almenda;
– Tetiana Lychko, documentarian at the Centre of Civil Education Almenda;
– Valentina Potapova, head of Direction of National Advocacy at the Centre of Civil Education Almenda;
Key topics:
– How anti-extremism laws are being used to suppress Ukrainian culture and enforce a “all-russian identity”;
– Pressure tactics targeting teachers, students, and school communities in occupied territories under the pretext of “countering extremism”;
– Measures needed at the national and international levels to protect the Ukrainian identity of children in occupied territories;
– Examples of successful strategies already in place to counter russian ideological influence on Ukrainian children’s worldview through education.
Background: Since 2014, russia has not only conducted military aggression but also pursued a systematic campaign of ideological control in occupied territories. Under the pretext of “fighting extremism”, moscow has used legislation to target anyone preserving Ukrainian language, culture, and identity, with children and schools among the primary targets.
On October 2 in Kyiv, as part of the 16th Odesa International Film Festival, the documentary Children in the Fire (Ukraine, USA, and the Czech Republic; directed by Evgeny Afineevsky) will premiere. The film documents crimes committed against Ukrainian children during the war, including abduction, deportation, and attempts at forced assimilation.
Subjects include Valeriia Sydorova, from Nova Kakhovka, who survived russian occupation and deportation to Crimea; Yana Stepanenko, who lost her legs in a russian missile attack on the Kramatorsk railway station; and Vladislav Buryak, who endured russian captivity. You can read the children’s detailed stories here.
Despite their traumatic experiences, the eight young protagonists continue to believe in the future and are pursuing careers as athletes, artists, and civil servants.
The film has already been screened at festivals in Monte Carlo, Raindance, and Documentaries Without Borders.
Journalists will have the opportunity to speak with the children featured in the film and the creative team. Registration is required to attend the event.
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.
Peaceful demonstrations will take place in 29 cities across Ukraine to draw attention to the plight of Azovstal defenders and other service members who remain in enemy captivity.
On September 13, rallies will be held in Lviv, Arbuzynka, Pivdenoukrainske, Okhtyrka, Vinnytsia, Chernihiv, Sumy, Dnipro, Bila Tserkva, Pavlohrad, Shpola, Volochysk, and Poltava.
On September 14, events are scheduled in Kyiv, Krolevets, Kremenchuk, Mykolaiv, Obukhiv, Irpin, Ovruch, Cherkasy, Uzhhorod, Dolynska, Berdychiv, Lozova, Kropyvnytskyi, Shostka, Odesa, and Chernivtsi.
The rallies are organized by families of prisoners of war from the Mariupol garrison. Ukrainians who have been released from captivity frequently take part, standing in solidarity with those still held.
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.
