Thousands of Ukrainians on Sunday urged their government to do more to get Russia to release prisoners of war, expressing their displeasure at a ceremony to mark the second anniversary of an explosion that killed more than 50 people.
Several thousand soldiers and civilians gathered in kyiv’s Independence Square on Sunday to commemorate the second anniversary of one explosion that killed more than 50 Ukrainians that Russia kept in the headquarters of the Olenivka prison.
The passionate speakers at the ceremony urged the Government of Ukraine a redouble your efforts to achieve the liberation of soldiers in a prisoner exchange. The Olenivka explosion was one of the most painful pages of the war, according to many soldiers.
“I was there in Olenivka. The explosion shook me“said Sergeant Kyrylo Masalitin, who was later released. “I have never felt so helpless before. And those still in captivity feel that helplessness every day. “They should know that we have done everything possible to secure their release.”
Behind Masalitin, more than 300 soldiers from the Azov brigade stood in formation and, in unison, recited a prayer before raising red flares in honor of their comrades.
All signs point to Russia
Russia has claimed that the Olenivka explosion was caused by Ukrainian forces firing a missile that hit the prison barracks. But Mounting evidence suggests Russian forces caused the explosionaccording to an investigation by the AP agency, which interviewed more than a dozen people with direct knowledge of the details of the attack, including survivors, investigators and relatives of the dead and missing.
All the tests described point directly to Russia as culpable. The AP also obtained an internal United Nations analysis that concluded the same thing. But despite the conclusion of internal analysis that Russia planned and executed the attack, the UN has not accused Russia in public statements.
Two years after the explosion, many Ukrainians still They want to know exactly how it happened.. Additionally, Sunday’s rally brought together people who remember the Olenivka tragedy with others protesting Russia’s imprisonment of Ukrainian fighters who defended the Azovstal steel factory and were taken prisoner when Russia took the city of Mariupol.
