World News | Ukraine Brings Back 31 Children from Russia Amid War
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. The head of a Ukrainian rescue organization said Saturday that the organization has brought back 31 children from Russia, where they had been taken during the war.
Kyiv, Apr 9 (AP) The head of a Ukrainian rescue organization said Saturday that the organization has brought back 31 children from Russia, where they had been taken during the war.
Mykola Kuleba said at a news conference in Kyiv that the children were expected to arrive in the capital later in the day. Kuleba is the executive director of the Save Ukraine organization and is the presidential commissioner for children's rights.
Also Read | Toshakhana Case: Lahore High Court to Hear Former Pakistan PM Imran Khan’s Plea on April 12.
Deportations of Ukrainian children have been a concern since Russia's February 24, 2022, invasion of Ukraine. The International Criminal Court increased pressure on Russia when it issued arrest warrants on March 17 for President Vladimir Putin and Russian children's rights commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, accusing them of abducting children from Ukraine.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said this week it had been in contact with Lvova-Belova, the first confirmation of high-level international intervention to reunite families with children who were forcibly deported.
Also Read | Iranian Authorities to Use Cameras in Public Places to Identify Women Who Violate Hijab Law.
ICRC spokesman Jason Straziuso said the organization was in contact with Lvova-Belova "in line with its mandate to restore contact between separated families and facilitate reunification where feasible."
An Associated Press investigation revealed Lvova-Belova's involvement in the abductions and found an open effort to put Ukrainian children up for adoption in Russia.
Lvova-Belova told an informal UN Security Council meeting Wednesday that the children were taken for their safety, not abducted — a claim widely rejected by the international community.
The exact number of Ukrainian children taken to Russia has been difficult to determine, and numbers from the warring countries differ vastly.
A statement posted Wednesday on Twitter by Ukraine's UN ambassador, Sergiy Kyslytsya, said more than 19,500 children had been seized from their families or orphanages and forcibly deported. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)