Russian soldiers harassed 15-year-old Vladyslav for not having a Russian passport. Living in constant fear, he knew that verbal abuse was only the start. Pro-Ukrainian boys were often taken by soldiers and tortured with electric shocks, later found barely alive on the streets. Consequently, Vlad hardly ever went outside.

Russian authorities forced Vlad and his younger siblings to attend a Russian school, threatening to take them away from their parents if they didn’t comply. At school, speaking Ukrainian, or even a mix of Ukrainian and Russian, was strictly forbidden. Ukrainian children had to learn Russian and “venerate” Russia.

Vlad’s experience reflects the harsh reality faced by hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian children under the Russian government’s genocidal policy in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. Our team is committed to documenting the crimes committed by the Russians against our children, confident that justice will eventually be served.

You can learn the full story of the Vlad family’s rescue from occupation here.