Ukraine brings home children taken to Russia
7:21 AM EDT, May 24, 2024
Thirteen Ukrainian children returned to their homeland from Russia and Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine on Thursday, according to Andriy Yermak, head of President Volodymyr Zelensky's office.
"Seven children returned from occupied territories, and another six returned from Russia as part of the Bring Kids Back UA project," Yermak wrote on Telegram on Thursday.
The information was confirmed by Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets.
According to Kyiv, around 20,000 children have been taken from Ukraine to Russia or to Russian-occupied territories without the consent of their families or guardians. Ukrainian authorities describe these actions as a war crime.
ICC issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova
In March 2023, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Russia's dictator Vladimir Putin and Russia's Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova for war crimes committed in Ukraine.
The judges acceded to the prosecutor's request, finding that there are reasonable grounds to believe that Putin and Lvova-Belova are responsible for crimes involving the unlawful deportation of children from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia.
