Russian security forces detain former teacher in occupied Kherson Oblast

On 5 August, Russian security forces searched the home of 52-year-old Hanna Pyrozhenko in the occupied village of Pershokostiantynivka, in Ukraine’s Kherson Oblast, before taking her away to an unknown location. The case was reported by Zarema Bariieva, a manager at the Crimean Tatar Resource Centre.

According to Zarema Bariieva, Hanna Pyrozhenko was given ‘only a few minutes to change clothes’ before being taken away. ‘Her husband set out to find her the following day, 6 August. But instead of receiving any information about his wife’s whereabouts, he himself was detained, severely beaten, tortured with electric shocks and had his ribs broken. After confiscating all his Ukrainian-issued documents, the occupiers released him and ordered him to leave the occupied territory within a matter of days. They told him outright that if he failed to do so, he would end up in the cell next to his wife,’ Zarema Bariieva said.

The Crimean Tatar Resource Centre has established that Hanna Pyrozhenko was initially taken to Chaplynka and later transferred to Henichesk. The fact that she has been assigned a lawyer suggests that criminal proceedings have been opened against her, although it remains unclear what charges she faces.

Hanna Pyrozhenko’s home was previously searched in January 2025, but no further action was taken at the time.

Hanna Pyrozhenko worked as a schoolteacher for around 20 years. She left her job in 2022 and had since been looking after the household and caring for her 83-year-old mother and her mother’s 77-year-old brother.