Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “On June 26, 2022, Belarusian fighters of the Kastus Kalinouski Regiment were ambushed near Lysychansk. Their commander, Ivan ‘Brest’ Marchuk, was killed. Several soldiers went missing, and two were taken prisoner by Russian forces.
It’s been 1,000 days – an endless time in captivity. That is how long our volunteers, Yan Dziurbeika and Siarhei Dziohtsieu, have been held as Russian prisoners. Their families and friends have no information about the conditions they are being kept in. Are they receiving food and water? Do they have a chance to sleep without fearing for their lives? Do they know that we remember them, that we are waiting for them? The only known fact is the sentence imposed on Yan Dziurbeika by a court in the self-proclaimed “DPR” – 14 years in a high-security prison.
With each prisoner exchange when Ukrainian soldiers return home, we see how such inhumane captivity impacts them. These images are unbearable to watch and impossible to forget. It is terrifying to imagine what our fighters are going through and the lasting physical, psychological, and emotional scars these tortures leave on them.
We are constantly advocating for the inclusion of Belarusian volunteers in prisoner exchange lists through Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Verkhovna Rada. I sincerely hope they will soon have a chance to return home.
Please continue supporting our volunteers. Yes, three years of war and horror can emotionally drain even the strongest of us. Sometimes, it feels easier to shut down – to distance yourself, unsubscribe from news feeds, and stop watching live reports from Ukraine. To avoid knowing about the bombing of Odesa, the missile strikes on a hospital in Sumy, the civilians killed in Kryvyi Rih by ballistic attacks.
But this war is right here. It is happening now. And as painful as it is to face this reality, we must not look away. We must not lose our empathy and solidarity. We must remember those in captivity, on the frontlines, and in prisons in Belarus – and support them and their families, even with small acts of kindness. Because silence and indifference are what the enemy wants and counts on. And our strength lies in unity”
