Last week, the Save Ukraine team successfully rescued another group of Ukrainian children from the temporarily occupied territories. The mission was made possible thanks to the support of partners united under the Bring Kids Back UA initiative.

Each child’s story is further proof that the occupiers are turning childhood into a tool of propaganda, fear, and coercion.

🔹 At just 16, Ilya was forcibly sent to a military camp in Volgograd—without his mother’s consent. There, he was made to wear a uniform, handle weapons, undergo “training,” and was even awarded a diploma as a “sniper.” This year, he was due to be conscripted into the Russian army. Determined to save him at all costs, his mother took action—and now Ilya and his brothers are safe.

🔹 Bohdan was also at risk of being drafted into the Russian army. All his classmates had already been registered, and his turn was coming soon. At school, lessons were taught not by qualified teachers but by tractor drivers and market vendors—a former vegetable seller became the biology teacher, and a manicurist was appointed school director.

🔹 Konstantin’s mother initially refused to enroll her son in a Russian school or accept Russian documents. But the occupation authorities threatened to place him in an orphanage, and one night, armed soldiers stormed their home and threatened the family with deportation. Under duress, she was forced to register him at the institution, where he had to sing the Russian anthem, take part in the “Zarnitsa” military game, and even carry the tricolor flag during assemblies.

🔹 At school, Solomiya was also forced to sing the Russian anthem, attend “lessons on important topics,” and meet with armed soldiers. Her home was searched several times by the military. Meanwhile, her mother, Svitlana, survived a missile strike, suffering serious leg injuries that left her reliant on crutches, and later lost her house in a fire.

Fortunately, these children have now regained their freedom. Today, they are undergoing rehabilitation in our centers, where our specialists provide everything necessary to help their families obtain documents and receive psychological and humanitarian support.

Thanks to Save Ukraine, more than 800 children have already been given the chance of a happy future in a free country. That is why we will not stop—we will continue rescuing children until every single one is home and safe.

🙏 We sincerely thank our partners—WeAreAllUkrainians, the Humanity Foundation, and the Joint Center for Coordination of the Search and Release of Prisoners of War and Illegally Detained Persons. Together, we are not just saving children—we are giving them back their childhood, peace, and hope.

Children’s names have been changed for safety reasons.