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Russia releases 10 prisoners of war including 2 Americans and 5 British soldiers captured in Ukraine after Saudi Arabia mediation

September 22, 2022 No Comments

Ten prisoners of war from countries including the United States and Britain have been released and transferred to Saudi Arabia as part of an exchange between Russia and Ukraine, the Gulf kingdom of Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday, September 21.

The release came following mediation by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, “in continuation of [his] commitment to the humanitarian initiatives towards the Russian-Ukrainian crisis”, the Saudi foreign ministry said.

The prisoners of war includes five British nationals, two Americans, a Croatian, a Moroccan and a Swedish national, the ministry said in a statement, adding that a plane carrying the prisoners landed in the kingdom.

The Saudi statement said they had arrived from Russia and that Saudi authorities were “facilitating procedures for their safe return to their respective countries”.

However, British lawmaker Robert Jenrick said Aiden Aslin was among those released.

Aslin was captured earlier this year then sentenced to death by a court in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), one of Russia’s proxies in eastern Ukraine.

Russia also released US citizens Alexander Drueke, 39, and Andy Huynh, 27, according to Reuters .

The pair, both from Alabama, were captured in June while fighting in eastern Ukraine where they went to support Ukrainian troops resisting Russia’s invasion.

Both Ukrainian and Russian forces have captured hundreds of enemy fighters since the start of the conflict, with a handful of prisoner exchanges having taken place.

For fear of possible attack amid the raging #EndSARS protest, the Nigerian Correctional Service on Wednesday did not take alleged kidnap kingpin, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, alias Evans, and his co-defendants, before the Lagos State Special Offences Court in Ikeja, where their trial was scheduled to continue before Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo.Evans and his alleged accomplices are facing two separate charges of kidnapping and murder before Justice Taiwo.

The two charges were listed as number 10 and 12 in the court’s cause list for Wednesday but neither the prosecution nor the defence came to court.

On enquiry from the court registrar, the two cases would not go on as the prisons had communicated to the court that they would not bring the defendants to court, citing the unrest in the city occasioned by the widespread #EndSARS protest.

“They are afraid of hijack by protesters,” the court register noted.

The NCS Green Marias were nowhere to be found and the holding cells for keeping inmates on the court premises were empty.

Officials at the holding cells said the NCS had not brought inmates to court since Monday.

Attempt to get the NCS spokesman in Lagos, Rotimi Oladokun, to react failed as his mobile phone number was unavailable.

In one of the two charges before Justice Taiwo, the Lagos DPP accused Evans and three others of killing two persons, in their failed attempt to kidnap the Chairman of Young Shall Grow Motors, Obianodo Vincent on August 27, 2013.