Eight city, village and settlement heads held in Russian captivity
Eight city, village, and settlement heads from Kherson, Zaporizhzhia and Kharkiv regions are currently held in Russian captivity, the Association of Ukrainian Cities reports.
The Association thanked all those involved in the release of captives, in particular, the Special Operations Forces, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine Iryna Vereshchuk.
"Unfortunately, the information about the release of Hola Prystan Mayor Oleksandr Babych from captivity has not been confirmed," the Association informs.
As of July 2, 2022, the aggressor holds captive:
- Dniprorudne city mayor Yevheniy Matveyev
- Vilkhivka village head Oleksandr Shmyhol
- Hola Prystan city mayor Oleksandr Babych
- Kherson city mayor Ihor Kolykhayev
- Velyki Kopani village head Valentyna Kostenko
- Hornostaivka settlement head Dmytro Liakhno
- Khrestivka village head Serhiy Khilchenko
- Novotroitske settlement head Petro Zbarovskyi
The Association of Ukrainian Cities continues to call on the international organizations to protect local government officials captured by the Russian aggressor and urges everyone to join in their release.
As reported, on July 28, the invaders kidnapped a head of the municipal property department of the city council in the temporarily occupied Enerhodar.
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