108 Ukrainian women released from Russian captivity

On October 17, 2022, another prisoner swap took place between Ukraine and Russia, and a total of 108 Ukrainian women were released from Russian captivity.

The relevant statement was made by Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak on Telegram, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“Another large-scale prisoner swap has been carried out today. Especially emotional and truly special – we have freed 108 women from captivity. It was the first female-only exchange. Mothers and daughters, whose relatives were waiting for them, were held captive. Thirty-seven of those evacuated from the Azovstal Steelworks, 11 officers, 85 privates and sergeants,” Yermak wrote.

In his words, among them, there are 35 Ukrainian female defenders from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 32 – from the Naval Forces, 12 – from the Territorial Defense Forces, eight – from the National Guard of Ukraine (including two from the Azov Regiment), five – from the Ukrainian State Special Transport Service, four – from the Ukrainian State Border Guard Service, and 12 civilians.

According to Yermak, some women were illegally detained in the CADLR (certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions) and imprisoned long before the Russian full-scale invasion started.

“People had been in jail since 2019 in the ‘pseudo-republics’ for an ‘extremely pro-Ukrainian position’, which was expressed in the delivery of humanitarian aid for orphaned children, fabricated ‘espionage’ and ‘terrorism’,” Yermak added.

Those who have been freed from Russian captivity will undergo a medical examination and rehabilitation.

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