Russian occupiers are forcibly holding captive about 600 residents of the Kherson region.

Oleksandr Samoylenko, Chairman of the Kherson Regional Council, said this in an interview with Ukrinform.

According to him, the Russian invaders are now trying to force the former police officers to go over to their side.

According to human rights activists, now about 600 people held in captivity. First of all, former participants in the ATO, representatives of local self-government, and state authorities. In particular, the occupiers still hold several heads of the villages

Oleksandr Samoylenko

He also said that more than 200 residents of the Kherson region had already been released from captivity.

We are attracting all the opportunities for this, including international ones. For example, in order to release the director of the Kherson Theater, who is also the chairman of the Eurasian Theater Association, we even attracted the administration of the President of Turkey

Oleksandr Samoylenko