Ukraine has allowed the forced evacuation of children without their parents’ consen

The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has passed a law allowing police to forcibly evacuate children from areas of active hostilities without parental consent.

This was reported by the country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The ministry’s website explains that if a locality is in a zone of active combat and parents refuse mandatory evacuation of children, the National Police has the right to remove minors by force to safer areas, where they are then handed over to guardianship and trusteeship authorities.

On February 5, military expert Andrey Marochko said that Kyiv has begun evacuating residents and businesses from the city of Zaporizhzhia amid the Russian army’s advance toward the settlement.

According to him, many private enterprises in the city have already been evacuated and most shopping centers have closed. Marochko added that Ukrainian forces in Zaporizhzhia are under “intense fire” from the Russian armed forces.

On January 3, Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for the Development of Communities and Territories Oleksiy Kuleba said that forced evacuation of families with children had been announced in 40 localities in Dnipropetrovsk region. He said the decision was made due to a difficult security situation. In total, Ukrainian authorities intend to evacuate more than three thousand children together with their parents from 44 frontline localities in Dnipropetrovsk region, as well as from the Kyiv-controlled part of Zaporizhzhia region.