Kyiv (CNN) A group of 31 Ukrainian children have been reunited with their families months after they were taken from their homes to Russian-occupied territories.
A CNN team on the ground in Kiev watched the last of the children He jumped off the bus Saturday to embrace the expectant family members, many of whom could not hold back tears as months of separation came to an end.
“we went to summer camp For two weeks but we were stuck there for six months,” said one of the homecoming teens, Bogdan, 13, hugging his mother. I cried when I saw my mom from the bus. I am very happy to be back.”
Bogdan’s mother, Irina, 51, said she received very little information about her son in the six months they were separated.
“There was no phone call. I was so worried. I didn’t know anything, whether or not he was being abused, what was happening to him… My hands are still shaking,” she said.
Anastasia holds her daughter Valeria and son Maxim in Kiev, Ukraine on April 8, 2023.
The reunion was coordinated by the humanitarian organization Save Ukraine. The organization says it has now completed five missions to bring back Ukrainian children it says were forcibly deported by Russia.
The children – dragging their suitcases and bags of belongings, along with some stuffed animals – accompanied by family members, had crossed the border on foot the day before and were greeted by volunteers before being transferred to the bus to the Ukrainian capital.
“Thanks to our joint and coordinated work, we again feel those amazing feelings when, after a long separation, children run across their native land in the arms of their families. When you see tears of joy on the faces of young Ukrainians, Save Ukraine founder Mykola Kuleba said at a press conference earlier on Saturday. You know, it’s not in vain.”
Tragedy struck during the last rescue mission, Koleba said: One of the women traveling with the party—a grandmother—died during the flight. The woman was to take two children on the mission, but due to her death, they were not allowed to return to Ukraine.
The founder said earlier that the expedition consisted of a group of 13 mothers, who left Ukraine just over a week ago, many of whom had obtained power of attorney that allowed them to collect the children of other parents in addition to their own.
The group crossed into Poland before traveling through Belarus, Russia and finally entering Russian-occupied Crimea, where they were reunited with 24 of the children.
She said the other seven children were collected in Voronezh, Rostov and Belgorod, all within Russia.
Allegations of the large-scale forced deportation of children from Ukraine to Russia form the basis of war crimes charges against Russian President Vladimir Putin and senior official Maria Lvova Belova by the International Criminal Court last month.
A report released in February detailed claims An extensive network of dozens of camps where children underwent “political rehabilitation”, including Russified academic, cultural and military education.
Head of the Presidential Office of Ukraine recently estimated The total number of children forcibly removed from their homes is at least 20,000. Kiev said thousands of cases are already under investigation.
Russia has denied it is doing anything illegal, claiming it is ferrying Ukrainian children to safety.