With only 2 weeks of funding left, US group tracking Russian abduction of Ukrainian children prepares to shut down
The Yale University-based Humanitarian Research Lab, which spearheads the Ukraine Conflict Observatory, has reportedly transferred its data to the U.S. State Department and Ukraine's government as it closes operations in the coming weeks.
"Right now, we are running on fumes," Nathaniel Raymond, the lab's executive director, told CNN. "As of July 1, we lay off all of our staff across Ukraine and other teams, and our work tracking the kids officially ends."
Since its launch in May 2022, the observatory has compiled evidence of Russian war crimes, including the deportation of Ukrainian children, many of whom were sent to reeducation camps or adopted by Russian families. The project relied on biometric and satellite data and has supported six International Criminal Court (ICC) indictments, including two related to child abductions, according to Raymond.
The database of the observatory contains records on more than 30,000 Ukrainian children allegedly abducted by Russia from over 100 locations, according to an undisclosed source cited by CNN. This figure outstrips estimates by Ukraine's Children of War database, which says that over 19,500 children have been deported or forcibly displaced by Russia.
The program's end leaves what experts call a major gap in accountability efforts.
"The Conflict Observatory's work cannot be replaced by Europol or other organizations," a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers reportedly wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio on June 11, urging the administration to restore funding.
While Rubio temporarily reinstated funding earlier this year to allow the lab to complete data transfers, he confirmed at a March 28 press conference that the program was ultimately defunded as part of government efficiency cuts. The transferred material, including documentation of attacks on civilian infrastructure and filtration sites, is now expected to be shared with Europol within days.
According to Ukraine's Children of War database, only around 1,300 of the abducted children have been brought home so far. Many others remain unidentified due to deliberate efforts by Russian authorities to obscure their identities by altering names and birth records.
Ukrainian leaders have repeatedly emphasized that repatriating abducted children is a non-negotiable condition for any future peace deal with Moscow.
In 2023, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and children's rights ombudsman Maria Lvova-Belova over their roles in the deportation of Ukrainian minors.
Read also: As Russia trains abducted children for war, Ukraine fights uphill battle to bring them home
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