Lost 15 kg in seven months: story of soldier who came back from Russian captivity
A soldier, released from Russian captivity, has revealed the conditions he was forced to endure for seven months.
The story of a soldier named Serhii (his name has been changed for security reasons) was told by the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War.
At first, the occupiers kept him in temporarily occupied territories and then took him to Russia.
"They fed me okay more or less, but I lost 15 kilograms in several months," the soldier said.
The serviceman was in Russian captivity for seven months. He has recounted that he did not have any access to information or communication with his close ones in the colony.
The letter that he sent home actually got to his home after three months.
And the soldier was released from captivity in October 2022.
He has said that he was not aware of what was happening on the contact line at all for seven months. However, he has added that he read about 20 books while he was there.
Serhii has recalled that they woke him up one night and told him to get dressed. He believed that he was being moved somewhere else. However, the Russians ordered him to record a video about how "they feed him three times a day, provide him with medical assistance, treat him well and he does not have any complaints".
"I had a feeling but was not sure that they were taking me to a prisoner swap," he said.
He has told about his first feelings when they were driving him through Ukraine’s occupied territory without a blindfold and he could see everything.
"I finally saw our land, our own land, even though enemies are still there. And it was such a sorrow, you know," Serhii said.
He has recalled that he was crying when he got freed.
"I dreamed of coming home in the autumn and seeing all the trees in green and yellow colours," he added.
Right after he was released, the soldier called his friends and told them that he was home. They let him know that Kharkiv Oblast and Kherson were liberated. Serhii has said that he was surprised because the Russians told everyone in captivity that the majority of Ukrainian territories were occupied.
"What can I advise the relatives of soldiers? I would say that they need to live, wait, and work for us to come back, but do not forget that they have lives, too," the serviceman said.
Background: The National Guard of Ukraine has revealed the story of a former migrant worker, who is now a soldier, Jackson, who came back from abroad in order to defend his land.
Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!
