Yesterday, ten Ukrainian civilians were released from Russian captivity. Among them are:
Nariman Dzhelyal, the first deputy chairman of the Mejlis (representative-executive organ) of the Crimean Tatar people. In September 2021, he was detained for participating in the Crimean Platform summit. Nariman was later taken to an unknown destination. After that, he was forcibly moved to Russia. On the basis of a falsified criminal case, Dzhelyal was sentenced to 17 years in a strict regime penitentiary.
While in captivity, the political prisoner wrote letters to Ukrainian people expressing his faith in liberation and victory.
Monk Ivan Levytskyi: originally from Lviv region, he served in Berdiansk in the parish of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. After the occupation of the city, he continued to pray with the congregation. On November 16, 2022, during a regular prayer in the center of Berdiansk, Levitsky was detained.
Monk Bohdan Geleta is from Ivano-Frankivsk region. He served in Berdiansk with Father Levitsky and together with him held services for believers under occupation. He was detained in the evening of the same day as Levitsky. Both monks were tortured.