Ukrainians held prisoner for years in Russia return to Kyiv
Ten Ukrainians held prisoner for years have been released from Russian captivity with the Vatican's mediation
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoner for years were released from Russian captivity Friday with the mediation of the Vatican, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
Part of the group arrived overnight by helicopter at Kyiv International Airport, which has been closed since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. It was the first time in over two years the airport received passengers. The rest of the group arrived by bus.
Some of the released civilians had been captured before Russia’s invasion. It’s a rare occasion when people detained after 2014, when Russia illegally annexed the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, were released.
Among the freed was Nariman Dzhelyal, deputy head of the Mejlis, a representative body of Crimean Tatars that was relocated to Kyiv after Russia seized the peninsula. He was taken from Crimea, where he lived despite the annexation, one year before the war.
