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Bring Kids Back UA Initiative Frees Eight Children From Russian-Controlled Areas
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![Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko]( "Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko")
Eight Ukrainian children and teenagers have been rescued from Russian-occupied territories as part of President Zelenskyy's Bring Kids Back UA initiative, according to the Office of the President on October 16.
Among those rescued is a one-and-a-half-year-old boy whom Russian security forces nearly took from his mother after discovering a contact with a Ukrainian soldier in her phone. A 17-year-old girl witnessed interrogations and beatings of her relatives after Russian troops stormed their home.
Two sisters, aged 13 and 16, were forced to study under a Russian curriculum, bullied for speaking Ukrainian, and were forcibly enrolled in the so-called “Movement of the First”—a state-sponsored group that militarizes children and prepares them for service in the Russian army.
A 10-year-old boy had been hidden at home for years by his father to protect him from forced enrollment in a Russian school.
All of the rescued children are now receiving essential support—including psychological, medical, and legal assistance—and are working to restore their documents as they gradually return to normal life.
Earlier, two Ukrainian families with children have been rescued from Russian-occupied territories under Bring Kids Back UA initiative, Andriy Yermak reported.
One family lived under occupation for over four years. Their 15-year-old son lacked proper medical care, while his eight-year-old sister spent much of her life in fear, Yermak noted.
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-24ca8683eb01b729cd8fae98f952003a.jpg "Ukrainian Ratel-S drone equipped with a downed Shahed warhead. (Source: omelyanovi4/Instagram)")