About 230 children have been returned to Russian families from Syria since 2018, including from refugee camps, Maria Lvova-Belova, Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights, said during a meeting of Russian-Syrian interdepartmental coordination headquarters.
She recalled that work on the return of children to families from Syria was launched in 2018. "To date, 228 children have already returned from Syria, taking into account those who arrived very recently. We have prepared a document for the removal of another 140 children," said Lvova-Belova.
"Just a week ago we returned nine children: eight from the camp located in the Euphrates and one from a shelter in Damascus. Medical examinations have been completed, and right now they are probably meeting with their big families," the commissioner said.
At the same time, the ombudsman noted that she is constantly being approached by relatives and parents asking for the return of their children. "Now there are about a thousand of these appeals. There is still a lot of work, we understand that we are still in the middle of the road," she said. Lvova-Belova expressed her gratitude to the Russian Defense Ministry and the Minister of Defense personally for ensuring the work and safety in Syria.
In turn, Mikhail Mizintsev, head of the NDMC, awarded Lvova-Belova with the medal "For Strengthening Military Cooperation" by order of the head of the military department. Mizintsev also heads the interdepartmental coordination headquarters of the Russian Federation for the return of refugees to Syria.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
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Based on materials from TASS