Since February 2022, at least 20,000 Ukrainian children have been abducted from Russian-occupied territories and sent to other Russian-controlled areas of Ukraine or to Russia itself, according to a Ukrainian national database, "Children of War."The Ukrainian Parliament’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, estimates that Russia has unlawfully deported up to 150,000 Ukrainian children, while the Children’s Ombudswoman, Daria Herasymchuk, puts the figure at 200,000–300,000.Ukraine considers these abductions a war crime and argues that they meet the U.N.'s legal definition of genocide. Russia often claims it is relocating children to protect them from conflict zones. According to the Ministry of Reintegration, the government has managed to return 388 children so far.In March 2023, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Children's Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, citing their involvement in the unlawful transfer of Ukrainian children.
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