‘I wanted to live’: A Ukrainian orphan’s journey through Russian occupation

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports that Denys Kostev, a 22-year-old Ukrainian orphan from Kherson, says he was forcibly moved into Russian-occupied territory after the full-scale invasion began and pressed into making pro-Russian propaganda videos to avoid punishment. The article says he was first held in Crimea, later returned to occupied southern Ukraine, and was again threatened when he complained publicly about conditions at a trade school dormitory.

According to Kostev, the pressure on children without parents was especially intense because they were isolated from family and told to accept Russian narratives. Al Jazeera places his account alongside broader claims by Ukraine and rights groups that thousands of children have been taken from occupied regions to Russia or Russian-run camps, where they are allegedly exposed to military-style indoctrination. Russia denies abducting children and says those moved were taken from war zones for safety or “re-education.”

The story also cites international and Ukrainian rights advocates who describe the alleged transfer and indoctrination of children as a major wartime abuse. Ukrainian officials say they have worked to bring back abducted minors, and Al Jazeera notes that more than 2,600 have returned so far. In Kostev’s case, he eventually reconnected with relatives abroad, left for Poland, and returned to Ukraine this year.

The article says he is now beginning military training and hopes to become a drone pilot, presenting his experience as part of the wider human toll of the war and the long-term impact on children caught in occupied areas.