2 American vets among POWs freed in prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine
Saudi Arabia has successfully freed 10 prisoners who were being held by Russian-backed forces, including two American veterans and five British citizens, as part of a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine, CNN reports.
The families of American vets Alexander John-Robert Drueke and Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh have confirmed that two are "are safely in the custody of the U.S. embassy in Saudi Arabia" awaiting clearance to return to the states. Both were captured in June while fighting on behalf of Ukraine north of Kharkiv.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Diana Shaw, a spokesperson for both families, released a statement confirming the release of the two Americans. In it, Shaw said, "We deeply appreciate everyone's prayers and especially the close communication and support of our elected officials, Ukrainian Ambassador Markarova, and our members of the U.S. embassies in Ukraine and Saudi Arabia and the U.S. Department of State."
The families were not aware that authorities were brokering the prisoner exchange. The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the release of 10 POWS on Wednesday. The group also included Moroccan, Swedish, and Croatian nationals.
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
-
Democrats pledge Noem impeachment if not firedSpeed Read Trump is publicly defending the Homeland Security secretary
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
