Another four LPR militiamen return home after prisoner swaps - ombudsperson

Another four Lugansk People’s Republic militiamen, released from Ukrainian captivity in the December 1 and December 6 POW exchanges, are back home after receiving emergency psychological, legal and medical assistance, LPR ombudsperson Viktoria Serdyukova said.

 

“The captive LPR militiamen suffer unprecedented torture and moral and psychological pressure from Ukrainian armed formations,” Serdyukova said. “Regrettably, the returnees are no exception. Each has health problems. The servicemen will take a rehabilitation course in an LPR hospital,” she said.

 

The Republic’s Migration Service will cooperate with the LPR Defense Ministry to reissue the servicemen’s IDs which were taken away from them in captivity, she added.

 

Over 150 LPR servicemen have returned from Ukrainian captivity since the beginning of the special military operation in February. The LPR ombudsperson said that more than 100 of them had been physically abused.

 

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a special military operation to protect Donbass residents from Ukrainian aggression. Prior to that, LPR and DPR Heads Leonid Pasechnik and Denis Pushilin asked the Russian leader to provide military assistance. The LPR militia and Russian armed forces fully liberated the LPR territory from Ukrainian armed formations on July 3.

 

The Ukrainian government launched the so-called anti-terrorist operation against Donbass in April 2014.  The peace talks that began soon thereafter failed to reach tangible results due to Kiev’s position to settle the conflict by force.

 

The Lugansk People’s Republic became a part of Russia on September 30, 2022 following the unification referendum.*i*v