Ukraine has returned 186 people from Russian captivity, including defenders of Mariupol and Azovstal
Among the released are servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (ZSU), the National Guard (NGU) and border guards of various ranks, from Donetsk region to the Kursk direction; some had been held captive since 2022, and there is also one civilian
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced a new prisoner exchange, under which 185 defenders and 1 civilian returned home.
The head of state informed about the results of the operation on Facebook, clarifying that among those released are servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard and the State Border Guard Service.
They include privates, sergeants and officers who carried out combat missions on various parts of the front, including during the defense of Mariupol and on the territory of Azovstal.
Among the directions where the freed Ukrainians operated were Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kyiv and Kursk.
It was separately emphasized that some of the released had been held in Russian captivity since 2022.
The President thanked the professional Ukrainian teams that conduct exchange negotiations, as well as international partners for their assistance, emphasizing that successful actions of the Defense Forces on the front strengthen the exchange pool and help return our people home.
“Every day we work to free every Ukrainian man and woman from captivity,” — said President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Earlier we reported:
- Almost four years in Russian captivity: Ukraine returned 205 defenders
- Finally at home: 175 defenders and 7 civilians returned from captivity — exchange at Easter
- “They’ve been there since 2022”: Zelenskyy announced the return of another 300 prisoners
- Huge exchange! Ukraine returned another 175 of its defenders from captivity!
- Ukraine returned another 95 prisoners of war home
