International Criminal Court announcements and official charges

Putin Used Presidential Planes to Abduct 314 Ukrainian Children for Forced Adoption, Yale Report Finds

Dec 3, 2024, 02:04 PM

Russian authorities, under the direct authorization of President Vladimir Putin, have implemented a systematic program to abduct Ukrainian children from occupied territories, according to a report by Yale University's Humanitarian Research Lab. The report identifies 314 Ukrainian children forcibly taken to Russia since February 2022, stripped of their Ukrainian identities through forced citizenship, and placed with Russian families for adoption or fostering; 166 of them have been adopted by Russian families. Russian presidential aircraft and funds were allegedly used in this operation, with leaked documents exposing military deportations and placements with officials' families. The evidence has been submitted to the International Criminal Court and will be presented to the UN Security Council to assist in prosecuting these actions as war crimes and crimes against humanity.