Russian forces gather children from occupied territories to take them to Moscow - Melitopol's mayor

This was reported by the mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov.

“Russian forces gather 1,620 children from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine in order to take them to Russia. Traditionally, the Russians justify themselves with "sweet" propaganda: the children will allegedly be taken to Moscow for the New Year holidays,” Fedorov wrote. 

The mayor of Melitopol urges parents not to give their children to the invading Russian forces. 

“The enemy has repeatedly shown that Russia needs them either for propaganda or as a 'human shield'. Therefore, it is not known whether the children will return home,” he said.

Fedorov recalled how, in September, children from Enerhodar, Kamianka-Dniprovska and other occupied territories of the Zaporizhzhia region were taken to Crimea and the Russian Federation by the Russian troops, first for a week, and then were left there for 2 months.