Protesters have expressed their frustration over what they say is the government’s poor communication and lack of clarity regarding the fate of relatives who went missing while fighting off Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Thousands of people have attended a rally in Kyiv to demand the Ukrainian government do more to secure the release of prisoners of war held in Russia.
Protesters also demanded authorities step up efforts to locate service personnel registered as missing.
The event began with a minute of silence after which the Orchestra of the Honour Guard of the Hetman Bohdan Khmelnytsky Separate Presidential Brigade played the Ukrainian national anthem.
“We came here so that we would not be forgotten, so that we would be paid attention to, so that when they returned, they would see that they were not forgotten here,” said Yulia, the wife of a missing soldier.
There have been semi-regular protests in Ukraine to demand answers about the whereabouts of loved ones missing in action.
Protesters have expressed their frustration over what they say is the government’s poor communication and lack of clarity regarding the fate of relatives who went missing while fighting off Russia’s full-scale invasion.
“There is silence, silence all around. My brothers, no one says anything, just like the command is silent,” complained the wife of another missing soldier, Tetiana.
Russia and Ukraine have carried out POW exchanges since the earliest days of the war, the last of which took place on 30 December last year.
That exchange, the 59th between the two countries, saw 150 Ukrainian soldiers swapped for an equal number of Russian personnel.
Ukraine hasn’t made public the number of POWs currently being held by Russia but that number is thought to be over 8,000.
Kyiv said in April that it estimates the total number of missing Ukrainians – both combatants and civilians – numbered almost 37,000 but officials said calculating the exact number is difficult and the figure could be much higher.
Kyiv under attack
Meanwhile, at least three people were killed in a Russian missile and drone strike on Kyiv in the early hours of Saturday morning.
Russia launched 39 Shahed drones, other simulator drones and four ballistic missiles on the capital, according to Ukraine’s Air Force.
Ukrainian air defence forces shot down two missiles and 24 drones. A further 14 drone simulators were lost in location, the statement said.
The Kyiv City Military Administration said three people were injured in the attack.
The office of Ukraine’s general prosecutor said in a statement that the casualties included a security guard at a food establishment and people who were in a minibus on the street.
Kyiv’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said windows were broken in the city’s Shevchenkivskyi district and there was smoke at the entrance of a residential building.
A water supply pipeline was also damaged, he added.
The Lukyanivska metro station was closed after the attacks damaged its glass entrance but was later reopened.
In a post on X, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said clean-up operations in Kyiv continued throughout the whole day, only ending in the evening.
