Ukrainians gathered today on the central square "Independence" in Kiev to urge the government to do more to get Russia to release Ukrainian prisoners of war it is holding. Demonstrators also marked the second anniversary of the explosion in Olenovka, in which more than 50 people died, the Associated Press reported, quoted by BTA.
Several thousand soldiers and civilians participated in the demonstration.
Two years ago, more than 50 Ukrainians, held by Russian forces there, died in a barracks prison in Olenovka. Speakers at today's memorial service called on the Ukrainian government to work harder to free other Ukrainian prisoners of war held by the Russians.
According to many soldiers present at the event today, the explosion in Olenivka is one of the most painful pages in the war. "I was there, in Olenivka. I was shaken by the explosion," says Sergeant Kirilo Masalitin, who was later released from Russian captivity. "I have never felt so helpless before. And those still in captivity feel this helplessness every day. They should know that we have done everything possible to free them," he added.
Russia claims the explosion in Olenivka was caused by Ukrainian forces firing a rocket that hit a prison barracks. According to an investigation by the Associated Press, however, more and more evidence points to the explosion being caused by Russian forces.
The AP interviewed more than a dozen people with direct knowledge of details of the attack, including survivors, investigators and families of the dead and missing. They all describe things that they say point directly to Russia as the culprit. The AP has also obtained an internal UN analysis that says the same thing. Despite the conclusion of the internal analysis that Russia planned and carried out the attack, the UN did not want to accuse Russia openly.
Two years after the explosion, many Ukrainians still want to know how exactly it happened. Today's demonstration brought together people commemorating the Olenivka victims with others protesting Russia's jailing of Ukrainian fighters defending the Azovstal steel plant. and were captured when Russia captured the city of Mariupol. Many also insisted on the release of these people.
"We are here to remember the dead and also those who are in captivity. We are here to demand that our government work hard on this matter," said a soldier who identified himself as Stanislav . He says he was a defender of Mariupol when the Russians invaded there in February 2022, and he was wounded in an artillery attack, losing his left arm. He was treated at the army base at the Azovstal steel plant before being captured by Russian forces and then released. After physical rehabilitation, Stanislav returned to the army and now works at the military headquarters in Kiev. He said he would continue to press for the release of the captured soldiers. "We are here for a special reason, to see that our captive brothers in arms return," he said.