Ukrainian Official Reunites With Mother in Recaptured Kharkiv Town

The mayor of Kharkiv’s Derhachi District, Vyacheslav Zadorenko, and his mother reunited in emotional embraces after her village was retaken by Ukrainian forces in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine, video posted on September 13 shows.

“The day I was waiting for more than anything in my life – meeting my dear mother!” Zadorenko said in a post on Facebook, according to a machine translation.

In another post on Tuesday, Zadorenko said he was in the “newly released” Kozacha Lopan community in the Derhachi District overseeing relief and evacuation efforts for local residents.

Ukrainian armed forces said on Sunday they had liberated areas in Kharkiv Oblast including districts in the cities of Izyum and Kupiansk.

In a video message on Monday, President Volodymyr Zelensky said 6,000 square km of Ukrainian territory in the east and south had been liberated since the beginning of September. Credit: Vyacheslav Zadorenko via Storyful