ZHOLOBOK, ukraine — Ukrainian military and separatist representatives exchanged dozens of prisoners under cover of darkness at a remote front-line location Saturday evening, kicking off a process intended to usher in peace to the conflict-ridden east.
The troops exchanged included 139 Ukrainians and 52 rebels, according to a separatist official overseeing the prisoner swap at a no-man’s-land location near Zholobok, a village about 12 miles west of the rebel-held city Luhansk.
A busload of Ukrainian soldiers in military fatigues was transported earlier in the day from the main rebel stronghold of Donetsk to a rural spot about 90 miles to the northeast, before joining up with other groups of fellow captives.
After arriving at the location near Zholobok, the troops were made to line up and listen to a speech by a rebel representative, who ordered the men to leave the territory claimed by the separatist movements in the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.
The soldiers — some of them using crutches, while one was carried on a stretcher — then walked about 2 miles to a rendezvous point.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko wrote on his Twitter account that he was informed the process had begun by the national security service. His spokesman, Svyatoslav Tsegolko, later said one more Ukrainian soldier prisoner was to be freed in the coming days.
The peace agreement signed last week in Minsk foresees an exchange of all prisoners in the conflict. It is unclear how many are held in total on both sides, although the Donetsk separatists have said Ukraine is holding about 580 rebels as prisoners.
