Russian forces have forcibly taken around 50 civilians from the village of Hrabovske in Ukraine’s Sumy region to Russian territory. This was confirmed by Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha and the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets.
The Incident in Hrabovske
According to Lubinets, on 18 December Russian troops illegally detained around 50 residents of the border village of Hrabovske. They were held without access to communication or adequate conditions. By 20 December, they were forcibly relocated to Russia.
Dmytro Lykhoviy, an officer of the Main Communications Directorate of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, told Ukrainska Pravda that during the Russian advance, Ukrainian defence forces were forced to withdraw from several positions in the Hrabovske area, where stabilisation efforts are currently underway.
The Sumy region regularly comes under shelling and small-scale incursions by Russian forces. Due to the ongoing threat, mandatory evacuations have been carried out in border communities, the Sumy Regional Military Administration has previously reported. Hrabovske is located about 200 metres from the state border with Russia.
These actions constitute a serious violation of international humanitarian law — these constitute unlawful detention and forced deportation of civilians, Lubinets said on his Telegram channel.
According to Ukraine’s General Staff, most of the civilians are elderly, including an 89-year-old woman. President Zelensky reported that children were also among those taken and added that Russian forces in Hrabovske captured 13 Ukrainian servicemen.
Ukraine and International Reaction
The actions prompted a strong response from Ukrainian authorities and the international community. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha compared Russia’s actions to those of terrorist groups.
With such medieval raids, Putin’s Russia shows it is no different from terrorist groups like ISIS, Boko Haram or Hamas, Sybiha wrote on social media platform X.
He stressed that Ukraine demands the immediate return of all civilian hostages.
We urge all states and international organizations to join us in demanding the release of innocent civilian people stolen from their homes, he said.
Lubinets also said he had contacted Russia’s human rights commissioner and the International Committee of the Red Cross, requesting information on the location and conditions of the deported Ukrainians and measures for their immediate return.
Why This Is Critical
The abduction of civilians from Hrabovske is not an isolated case. Forced deportations, including of children, have been a systematic practice by Russia since 2014, following the annexation of Crimea and the temporary occupation of parts of Donbas. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, such cases have become more frequent. Ukrainian law enforcement is already investigating these acts as war crimes.
According to Sybiha, the situation “underscores the permanent threat of living next to Russia” and shows that without concrete international security guarantees, lasting peace for Ukraine is impossible.
Deportation of children and adults from Mariupol / Photo: Petro Andryushchenko in Telegram, LB.ua
Conclusion
Events in Hrabovske show that civilians remain a tool of pressure and intimidation for Russia. Beyond violations of international humanitarian law, these actions affect security in border communities.
For Ukraine, the case strengthens the argument for Russia’s international legal accountability for forced deportations and unlawful detention, while again highlighting the need to ensure the safety of border communities and manage mandatory evacuations, particularly of the elderly.
The situation also demonstrates that the war for Ukraine is a struggle for every individual. And the return of unlawfully deported civilians is an important measure of the international community’s ability to hold the aggressor accountable.
