Ukraine retrieves 49 people from Russian captivity, including Mariupol military medic

Ukraine has successfully retrieved 49 Ukrainians from Russian captivity – a new exchange with the aggressor country took place on September 13, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X.

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"Forty-nine Ukrainians are now home. These include warriors from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard, the National Police, the State Border Guard Service, and our civilians," he wrote.

Among those freed is Crimean Tatar activist Leniye Umerova, who was taken hostage by Russian occupiers when she came to care for her sick father. Ukraine also exchanged some of the Azovstal military personnel. Among those who have returned home is Hero of Ukraine and military doctor Viktor Ivchuk, who headed the military hospital in Mariupol.

According to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, among those freed are 23 soldiers and sergeants, and 19 officers. Eight are from the Armed Forces, two from the National Police, four border guards, 13 naval personnel, and 15 defenders of Mariupol and Azovstal from the National Guard. The remaining seven are civilians.

The Coordination Headquarters calls this exchange special, as for the first time in a long while, they managed to free 23 Ukrainian women from captivity. In particular, these are civilian women whom the Russians detained and illegally imprisoned even before the full-scale invasion.

The exchange was facilitated by the United Arab Emirates.

"All those freed from Russian captivity will undergo medical examinations, receive physical and psychological rehabilitation assistance, all due payments for the entire time spent in captivity, and will be reintegrated into society," the Coordination Headquarters added.

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