Dozens Of Prisoners Of War Are Released As Ukraine Marks Orthodox Easter

As Orthodox Ukrainians celebrated Easter for the second time since the Russian invasion in February of last year, more than 100 Ukrainian prisoners of war were freed as part of a significant Easter exchange with Russia.

Due to security concerns, celebrations were muted, and a curfew prevented believers from attending normal all-night services. Nevertheless, both Ukrainian authorities and common citizens conveyed messages of optimism, connecting the narrative of Jesus’ resurrection to their desire for peace and a Ukrainian victory.

According to the presidential adviser Andriy Yermak, a “big Easter prisoner exchange” had resulted in the return of 130 troops, sailors, border guards, and other imprisoned individuals from Moscow.

The troops that were released, according to Mr. Yermak, were those who battled close to Bakhmut, the eastern mining city that has been the center of Russia’s operation for months. The goal of Kyiv, according to Mr. Yermak, is to return all POWs still held captive. “The lives of our people are the highest value for us,” he added.

There was no immediate word on the number of Russian prisoners that were freed, but the founder of the Wagner Group, a paramilitary group with ties to the Russian government whose members are well-known in eastern Ukraine, released a video on Sunday of Ukrainian prisoners of war being prepared for an exchange.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the creator of Wagner, is seen telling a soldier in the video to have the Ukrainian hostages ready to depart the Russian-controlled area “by lunchtime” on Sunday. The footage was posted on the Telegram messaging app. The POWs are then seen getting into trucks and strolling down a street.

The Easter holiday, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, symbolizes “the victory of good, the victory of truth, the victory of life,” and he emphasized Ukrainian solidarity in the face of Russian aggression in his Easter address, which was made public on Sunday morning.

“Belief in victory unites all of us always, and especially today. At Easter, which from time immemorial has been a family holiday for Ukrainians, is a day of warmth, hope, and great unity. We are one big family — Ukrainians. We have one big home — Ukraine. We have one big goal — victory for all,” Mr Zelensky said.

General Valery Zaluzhnyy, the senior soldier in Ukraine, drew comparisons between the Christian narrative of rebirth and resurrection and Ukraine’s aspirations for victory.

“Easter is a holiday of great hope. Hope that will bring us peace. I believe that together, united, we will overcome the enemy,” he wrote in a Facebook post. He also thanked all front-line soldiers who he said will “hold the defense in the trenches, stay in the dugouts, … carry out combat duty” as the rest of the country celebrates.

Holiday habits have been disrupted for the second year in a row by the horrific fighting in Moscow. This week, Ukraine’s top security agency released a statement advising citizens to leave churches quickly on Sunday to reduce crowds and security hazards.

An Orthodox church in the town of Komyshuvakha was hit by Russian shelling throughout the course of the previous night, according to the head of the local military administration in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia province earlier on Sunday.

Ukrainian officials stated on Sunday morning that at least four civilians were killed and eight more were injured on Saturday and overnight.

The Kremlin-appointed leader of the Donetsk region asserted that a Ukrainian strike in the province’s namesake city resulted in the death of one civilian and the injury of six others across the front line in Russian-occupied territory in Ukraine’s industrial east. In a Telegram post, Denis Pushilin reported that shelling had occurred in the city’s center, close to the Holy Transfiguration cathedral.

Regarding the number of civilian fatalities, neither Mr. Pushilin’s assertions nor those made by Ukrainian officials could be independently verified.