10 Ukrainians held prisoner for years in Russia return home after Vatican mediation

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ten Ukrainian civilians held prisoner for years by Russia arrived in Kyiv overnight Saturday after the mediation of the Vatican, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

They were freed Friday. Some had been captured years before Russia’s full-scale invasion. The pope has said the Holy See has been involved in past prisoner swaps during the Ukraine war.

Among those freed was Nariman Dzhelyal, deputy head of the Mejlis, a representative body of Crimean Tatars that was relocated to Kyiv after Russia seized the peninsula in 2014. He was taken from Crimea, where he lived despite the annexation, one year before the war.

The chief of Mejlis, Refat Chubarov, and Crimean Tatar leader Mustafa Dzhemilev embraced him after nearly three years of captivity.

Dzhelyal said many Ukrainians remain in captivity: “We cannot leave them there because the conditions, both psychological and physical, are very frightening there.”

The former prisoners, wrapped in blue and yellow flags, reunited with families in Kyiv and called those who couldn’t be there. For some, the separation had lasted many years.

“I really want to hug you. I’ll be with you soon, Mommy,” said Isabella Pekh, the daughter of freed art historian Olena Pekh, through a video call. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t meet you.”

For almost six years, Isabella Pekh spoke at international conferences and appealed to ambassadors for help in freeing her mother, who was detained in the occupied part of the Donetsk region.

“It was six years of hell that words cannot describe. But I knew I had my homeland, I had people who loved me, I had my daughter,” Olena Pekh said.

Two Ukrainian Greek Catholic priests were among those freed. One, Bohdan Heleta, was detained in 2022 in his church in the occupied city of Berdiansk in the southeastern region of Zaporizhzhia.

“There are a lot of our men and women there," Heleta said of those who remain imprisoned. "They need help, concrete help. They are waiting for it.”

Pope Francis in an address on Saturday called for the release of all prisoners in the war, and thanked God for the liberation of the two priests.

Zelenskyy in a post on X wrote that “I am grateful to everyone who helped. I thank our team working to free the prisoners. I also want to acknowledge the efforts of the Holy See in bringing these people home.”

According to Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, 3,310 Ukrainians have already been released from Russian captivity since Russia's full-scale invasion. Many thousands, both civilians and military personnel, remain imprisoned.

Associated Press reporter Giada Zampano in Rome, Italy, contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Valeriy Matiushenko, who spent over seven years in Russian captivity, talks to his relatives via video signal at Kyiv airport, Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Priest Bohdan Heleta, who was detained inside his own church in the occupied city of Berdiansk in the Zaporizhzhia region in 2022, smiles at Kyiv airport in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Olena Pekh, left, researcher at Horlivka Art Museum shows the bracelet on her arm while she speaks to her daughter via videosignal, in Kyiv airport, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Olena Pekh, left, researcher at Horlivka Art Museum talks to her daughter via videosignal in Kyiv airport, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Valeriy Matiushenko, who spent over seven years in Russian captivity, signs the Ukrainian national flag in Kyiv airport, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Nariman Dzhelyal, right, deputy head of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, signs the Ukrainian national flag in Kyiv airport, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Priest Bohdan Heleta, left, who was detained inside his own church in the occupied city of Berdiansk in the Zaporizhzhia region in 2022, speaks to his friend in Kyiv airport, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Nariman Dzhelyal, deputy head of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, center, in Kyiv airport, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Among the freed was Deputy Head of the Mejlis Nariman Dzhelyal. Mejlis is a representative body of Crimean Tatars that was relocated to Kyiv after Russia seized Crimea.(AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Priest Bohdan Heleta, who was detained inside his own church in the occupied city of Berdiansk in the Zaporizhzhia region in 2022, arrives at Kyiv airport in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Valeriy Matiushenko, who spent over seven years in Russian captivity, talks to his relatives via video signal at Kyiv airport, Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Medics check the health of Ivan Levytskyi, who was recently released from Russian captivity, in Kyiv airport, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Nariman Dzhelyal, second right, deputy head of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People stands among with other prisoners who have been recently released in Kyiv airport, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoners for years, were released from Russian captivity on Friday with a mediation of Vatican, said Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Olena Pekh, researcher at Horlivka Art Museum, cries while she speaks to her daughter via videosignal in Kyiv airport, Ukraine, Saturday, June 29, 2024. Ten Ukrainians who had been held prisoner for years were released from Russian captivity Friday with the mediation of the Vatican, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Beryl was closing in on the southeastern Caribbean, and government officials late Sunday pleaded with people to take shelter from the dangerous Category 3 storm.

The storm was expected to make landfall in the Windward Islands on Monday morning. Hurricane warnings were in effect for Barbados, St. Lucia, Grenada, Tobago and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

“This is a very dangerous situation,” warned the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami, saying Beryl was “forecast to bring life-threatening winds and storm surge.”

Beryl was centered about 110 miles (175 kilometers) south-southeast of Barbados early Monday. It had maximum sustained winds of 120 mph (195 kph) and was moving west at 20 mph (31 kph). It is a compact storm, with hurricane-force winds extending 30 miles (45 kilometers) from its center.

It had gained Category 4 strength Sunday before weakening slightly, and further fluctuations in strength were forecast.

A tropical storm warning was in effect for Martinique and Trinidad. A tropical storm watch was issued for Dominica, Haiti's entire southern coast, and from Punta Palenque in the Dominican Republic west to the border with Haiti.

Beryl was expected to pass just south of Barbados early Monday and then head into the Caribbean Sea as a major hurricane on a path toward Jamaica. It was forecast to weaken by midweek, but still remain a hurricane while heading toward Mexico.

Beryl initially strengthened into a Category 3 hurricane Sunday morning, becoming the first major hurricane east of the Lesser Antilles on record for June, according to Philip Klotzbach, Colorado State University hurricane researcher.

It took Beryl only 42 hours to strengthen from a tropical depression to a major hurricane — a feat accomplished only six other times in Atlantic hurricane history, and with Sept. 1 as the previous earliest date, hurricane expert Sam Lillo said.

Beryl then gained more power, becoming the earliest Category 4 Atlantic hurricane on record, besting Hurricane Dennis, which became a Category 4 storm on July 8, 2005, hurricane specialist and storm surge expert Michael Lowry said.

“Beryl is an extremely dangerous and rare hurricane for this time of year in this area,” Lowry said in a phone interview. “Unusual is an understatement. Beryl is already a historic hurricane and it hasn’t struck yet.”

Hurricane Ivan in 2004 was the last strong hurricane to hit the southeastern Caribbean, causing catastrophic damage in Grenada as a Category 3 storm.

“So this is a serious threat, a very serious threat,” Lowry said of Beryl.

Reecia Marshall, who lives in Grenada, was working a Sunday shift at a local hotel, preparing guests and urging them to stay away from windows as she stored enough food and water for everyone.

She said that she was a child when Hurricane Ivan struck and that she doesn't fear Beryl.

“I know it’s part of nature. I’m OK with it,” she said. “We just have to live with it.”

Forecasters warned of a life-threatening storm surge of up to 9 feet (3 meters) in areas where Beryl makes landfall, with 3 to 6 inches (7.6 to 15 centimeters) of rain for Barbados and nearby islands and possibly 10 inches in some areas (25 centimeters).

Warm waters are fueling Beryl, with ocean heat content in the deep Atlantic the highest on record for this time of year, said Brian McNoldy, a tropical meteorology researcher at the University of Miami.

Lowry said the waters are now warmer than they would be at the peak of the hurricane season in September.

Beryl marks the farthest east that a hurricane has formed in the tropical Atlantic in June, breaking a record set in 1933, according to Klotzbach.

“Please take this very seriously and prepare yourselves,” said Ralph Gonsalves, the prime minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. “This is a terrible hurricane.”

Long lines formed at gas stations and grocery stores in Barbados and other islands as people rushed to prepare for a storm that rapidly intensified.

Thousands of people were in Barbados for Saturday’s Twenty20 World Cup final, cricket’s biggest event, with Prime Minister Mia Mottley noting that not all fans were able to leave Sunday despite many rushing to change their flights.

“Some of them have never gone through a storm before,” she said. “We have plans to take care of them.”

Mottley said all businesses should close by Sunday evening and warned that the airport would close by nighttime.

Across Barbados, people prepared, including Peter Corbin, 71, who helped his son put up plywood to protect his home's glass doors. He said by phone that he worried about Beryl's impact on islands just east of Barbados.

“That’s like a butcher cutting up a pig,” he said. “They’ve got to make a bunker somewhere. It’s going to be tough.”

In St. Lucia, Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre announced a national shutdown for Sunday evening and said schools and businesses would remain closed Monday.

“Preservation and protection of life is a priority,” he said.

Caribbean leaders were preparing not only for Beryl, but for a cluster of thunderstorms trailing the hurricane that had a 70% chance of becoming a tropical depression.

“Do not let your guard down,” Mottley said.

Beryl is the second named storm in what is forecast to be an above-average hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30 in the Atlantic. Earlier this month, Tropical Storm Alberto came ashore in northeastern Mexico with heavy rains that resulted in four deaths.

On Sunday evening, a tropical depression formed near the eastern Mexico coastal city of Veracruz, with the National Hurricane Center warning of flooding and mudslides.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts the 2024 hurricane season is likely to be well above average, with between 17 and 25 named storms. The forecast calls for as many as 13 hurricanes and four major hurricanes.

An average Atlantic hurricane season produces 14 named storms, seven of them hurricanes and three major hurricanes.

A man boards up a door in preparation for Hurricane Beryl in Calliaqua, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sunday, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Lucanus Ollivierre)

Costumers purchase groceries ahead of Hurricane Beryl in Arnos Vale, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sunday, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Lucanus Ollivierre)

Fishing boats lie in a field after being moved to prevent potential damage ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Beryl in Calliaqua, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sunday, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Lucanus Ollivierre)

A woman walks off the beach after attending a religious gathering in Bridgetown, Barbados, Sunday, June 30, 2024. Hurricane Beryl strengthened into a Category 4 storm as it approaches the southeast Caribbean. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

Residents cover the windows of their home in preparation for the arrival of Hurricane Beryl in Bridgetown, Barbados, Sunday, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

A man pulls a kayak as sailboats line up to enter a marina ahead of Hurricane Beryl's arrival in Speightstown, Barbados, Sunday, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)

A sailboat enters a marina ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Beryl in Speightstown, Barbados, Sunday, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)

People walk off the beach after attending a religious gathering in Bridgetown, Barbados, Sunday, June 30, 2024. Hurricane Beryl strengthened into a Category 4 storm as it approaches the southeast Caribbean. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

Sailboats line up to enter a marina ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Beryl in Speightstown, Barbados, Sunday, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)

People disassemble a beach bar's awning in preparation for Hurricane Beryl, in Bridgetown, Barbados, Sunday, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

Beachgoers surf in Bridgetown, Barbados, Sunday, June 30, 2024. Hurricane Beryl strengthened into a Category 4 storm as it approaches the southeast Caribbean. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

A resident carries wood to cover his house's windows in preparation for Hurricane Beryl, in Bridgetown, Barbados, Sunday, June 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

This National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite image taken at 3:10am GMT shows tropical storm Beryl, lower center right, as it strengthens over the Atlantic Ocean on Saturday, June 29, 2024. The storm could strengthen into the year's first hurricane before it reaches the Caribbean Sea early next week. (NOAA via AP)

This National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite image taken at 4:50pm EDT shows hurricane Beryl as it strengthens over the Atlantic Ocean and churns toward the southeast Caribbean on Saturday, June 29, 2024. (NOAA via AP)

This National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite image taken at 4:20pm EDT shows hurricane Beryl, lower center right, as it strengthens over the Atlantic Ocean and churns toward the southeast Caribbean on Saturday, June 29, 2024. (NOAA via AP)