Russian military forces have been accused of a 'barbaric' cross-border raid resulting in the abduction of 50 Ukrainian civilians, predominantly elderly women, from a village in the northern Sumy region.
A 'Medieval' Act of Kidnapping
The incident reportedly began last Thursday when Vladimir Putin's troops crossed into Ukraine near the village of Hrabovske, located just 200 metres from the Russian border. According to Ukrainian officials, the soldiers did not attempt to seize territory but instead rounded up residents.
Viktor Trehubov, the national forces communications chief, stated the group was 'herded' into a local church before being 'dragged' across the frontier into Russia on Saturday. Ukraine's human rights commissioner, Dmytro Lubinets, confirmed the civilians were taken and are now being held incommunicado, with their current location unknown. Among those captured is an 89-year-old woman.
International Condemnation and Wider Pattern
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has likened the raid to the tactics of terrorist organisations, calling it a 'medieval' act comparable to mass kidnappings by Boko Haram or ISIS. On social media platform X, he demanded the return of the 'civilian hostages' and highlighted the thousands of other Ukrainians, including children, forcibly deported to Russia.
Yuriy Boyechko of the Hope For Ukraine charity, working in Sumy, condemned the act as 'cowardice'. He revealed a tragic dimension to the story, noting many of those taken had refused earlier evacuation offers because they felt they had 'nowhere else to go and no means to survive elsewhere'.
This event fits a documented pattern. Reports from the UN, human rights agencies, and the US-based Conflict Observatory detail a 'vast network' of detention facilities used since the full-scale invasion began nearly four years ago. The British government states that as of September this year, more than 19,500 Ukrainian children have been forcibly taken to Russia.
Calls for Accountability and Lasting Peace
Ukraine is already prosecuting this specific incident as a war crime and is demanding an international response. Commissioner Lubinets has contacted the International Committee of the Red Cross and his Russian counterpart regarding the 'illegally deported' citizens.
Minister Sybiha used the incident to argue for 'robust security guarantees' for Ukraine, stating that living next to Russia presents a permanent threat. 'That is why Ukraine needs a real, lasting peace,' he asserted.
The reported kidnappings occurred as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy honoured Ukrainian energy workers for maintaining the power grid under relentless Russian attack. He noted there is 'not a single power plant in Ukraine today that has not been damaged' by Russian strikes.
Russia has not issued any public statement regarding the alleged abduction in Hrabovske. The International Criminal Court issued a warrant for Vladimir Putin's arrest in 2023 over the alleged unlawful deportation of children.
