Ukraine returns journalist Khilyuk and ex-mayor of Kherson Mykolayenko from captivity – photos

On Sunday, August 24, Ukraine returned military personnel and civilians from captivity, including journalist Dmytro Khilyuk. This was reported by and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

"Today our people are coming home. Soldiers of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, the State Border Guard Service and civilians. Most of them have been in captivity since 2022," the president wrote.

The President emphasized that on this day, journalist Khilyuk, who was abducted in Kyiv region in March 2022, was released.

"The exchanges continue. And this is possible thanks to our soldiers who replenish the exchange fund for Ukraine. Our team who works every day. Partners who help. We thank the UAE for their help. Thanks to everyone who makes it possible for our people to return," the President added.

The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War clarified to that the military and eight civilians have returned home. All of the released defenders are privates and sergeants. Almost all of them spent more than three years in captivity.

The returning soldiers defended the city of Mariupol, Luhansk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Kyiv, Sumy, and guarded the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Also, those who fell into the hands of the enemy in the temporarily occupied territories and in Crimea will see their relatives.

The Coordination Center confirmed the release of Khilyuk and Mark Kaliusz. They were illegally detained by the occupiers in 2022 and 2023. Among the released civilians is also a medic Serhiy Kovalev from the Hospitallers battalion, who saved the lives of defenders and civilians during the siege at the Azovstal plant. The former mayor of Kherson, Volodymyr Mykolayenko, who did not cooperate with the occupiers, is also returning home.

The Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets reported that the youngest released military officer was 26 years old, the oldest was 62 years old. The youngest released civilian is 28 years old, the oldest is 65 years old.

Lubinets published a video with Mykolayenko, who served as the head of Kherson from 2014 to 2020. The occupiers detained him in April 2022.

• On August 14, Ukraine returned 84 people – military and civilians – from Russian captivity. Some of them had been in captivity for more than 10 years.