«The children wanted to return», — Kim told why the children of Novopetrivka boarding school, who were taken by the Russians, were returned from Georgia

Eight children from the Novopetrivka orphanage, who were recently returned to Ukraine after three years in Georgia, are undergoing rehabilitation in a Kyiv institution.

Iryna Ponomariova, head of the Children's Service of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration, told NikVesti.

Prior to the return of the children, in conversations with Mykolaiv officials and the staff of the institution, it was repeatedly reported that the children should remain in a safe area until the end of martial law. However, according to Iryna Ponomariova, the children themselves expressed a desire to return home.

«Initially, we planned to stay in Georgia, but the children expressed a desire to return. And there, in Georgia, they were assessed for their needs, their wishes were found out, and there are statements from the children that they wanted to return,» the official said.

The return procedure was carried out with the direct involvement of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights and with the support of a charity organisation that supported their transportation.

«Today they are in Kyiv at a centre where they are undergoing rehabilitation. In addition, it is planned that they will go for health improvement and then return to Mykolaiv region after rehabilitation. Adaptation is a long process,» she adds.

Upon returning to Mykolaiv, the adult children who are already students of educational institutions will be settled in dormitories. Other children will be placed in family-based care.

«Most likely, a family-type orphanage or foster families. Currently, passports are still being made for them, as the children have grown up, and they are applying for the relevant state benefits. When they return and we have the opportunity, we will, of course, establish contact with new families and place them in family-based care,» said Iryna Ponomariova.

What about the children from Novopetrivka boarding school?

During the occupation, 16 children were taken from the Novopetrivka boarding school. All of them, according to the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration, later ended up in Georgia. The children were taken to Georgia by the director of the institution, Nataliia Lutsyk.

In July 2023, journalists from «Slidstvo.Info» identified the abductors of orphans who were taken to the Russian Federation during the occupation of Snihurivka district from the Novopetrivka boarding school.

In March 2024, the Security Service of Ukraine collected evidence against two more citizens involved in the deportation of Mykolaiv children to Russia.

Last year, one of the children was taken from Georgia to the United States by her foster mother, American Bethany White, who adopted 16-year-old Yulia. The process began in 2020, but all bureaucratic issues were completed only on 23 February 2022. So Yulia, along with 14 other children, met the beginning of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in the village of Novopetrivka. Now she is with her new family in the United States.

Subsequently, law enforcement officers served a notice of suspicion on the commander of the department of the 205th separate motorised rifle brigade of the Russian armed forces, Dzhabrail Yusupov, call sign «Gabriel». According to the case file, it was under his command that the military abducted 15 children.

It should be noted that, in addition, Dzhabrail Yusupov also participated in the abduction and torture of civilians. In early August 2025, Ukrainian investigators completed an investigation into the abduction of children. According to the Prosecutor General, the evidence will be used both in Ukrainian courts and international institutions.