Kidnapped Ukrainian policewoman's two years of hell being tortured by Putin's forces: Emaciated officer, 24, starved and beaten after she was abducted while fleeing Mariupol weeps as she finally returns home

For the past 2 years, Mariana Checheliuk was kept nether fastener and cardinal successful Russian 'filtration' camps, ne'er knowing erstwhile she would ever spot her loved ones again. 

Moved betwixt detention centres in Donetsk, Yelenovka, Taganrog, Kamyshin and Mariupol, the 24-year-old researcher with Ukraine's nationalist constabulary endured relentless carnal and intelligence torture astatine the hands of her captors. 

They starved her, and bushed her severely for 2 years, aft she was taken portion hiding from Russian bombs successful the walls of Azovstal steelworks successful Mariupol on with her sister, who was thankfully released by her kidnappers. 

She suffered a litany of wellness problems, suffering from kidney failures, spine problems and chronic bronchitis. Her hairsbreadth besides started to autumn out, and she stopped having periods.

In August 2022 quality rights activists expressed alarm implicit her destiny successful Russian hands. 

Russian forces besides tried to get her to defect, her mother Nataliia Checheliuk, told ZMINA quality outlet successful January 2024: 'They were trying to lure my girl to the Russian broadside with some saccharine promises of a large wage and intimidation. But she refused.'

During her 2 years of captivity, she was lone allowed to speech to her household once, and sent conscionable a fistful of letters detailing her deteriorating health.  

But connected Friday, Mariana was 1 of the 75 radical who were returned to Ukraine arsenic portion of an agreed captive swap with Russia. 

The returnees were seen singing a patriotic opus led by erstwhile PoW Konstantin Mirgorodsky arsenic they were driven to conscionable their families aft merchandise from detention successful Russia. 

Upon arrival, they whooped and cheered arsenic they joined their loved ones successful Ukraine.

Some knelt and kissed the ground, portion galore wrapped themselves successful yellow-blue flags.

They hugged 1 another, breaking into tears. Many appeared emaciated and poorly dressed.

The aforesaid fig of Russians, 75, were besides returned location successful a swap brokered by the United Arab Emirates.

It was the archetypal PoW speech since February, and lone the 4th captive swap this twelvemonth and the 52nd since Russia invaded Ukraine successful February 2022. It included a full of 150 POWs and the United Arab Emirates helped negociate this latest exchange, the Foreign Ministry successful Kyiv said.

The 2 sides person traded blasted for what they accidental is simply a slowdown successful the swaps.

Ukraine has successful the past urged Russia to swap 'all for all' and rallies calling for the merchandise of POWs instrumentality spot crossed Ukraine weekly. 

A Ukrainian authoritative astatine the office coordinating the exchanges, Vitalii Matviienko said that 'Ukraine is ever ready.'

Tatyana Moskalkova, Russia's quality rights ombudsperson, said earlier this week that Kyiv was making 'new artificial demands,' without elaborating.

Despite the swap, astir 2,000 Ukrainian prisoners of warfare inactive stay successful Russian hands.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said connected Friday: 'Throughout each of this time, we person not stopped moving for a azygous time to bring everyone location from Russian captivity.

'We retrieve each person.

'We are making each effort to find each and each 1 of our people. I americium grateful to the squad liable for the exchanges.'