Thread by @PaulaChertok

🤞Looks like these 2 buses leaving Moscow’s Lefortovo prison under heavy police escort are part of Ukraine-Russia long-awaited prisoner swap. 24 Ukrainian sailors have been imprisoned there since Russian FSB attacked their vessels at Kerch Strait last Nov.

Russian media posts photos of Ukrainian sailors on the buses presumably released from Lefortovo prison today, in the Ukraine-Russia prisoner exchange finally now underway.

https://twitter.com/dimsmirnov175/status/1170234670807691264?s=21

Reports say filmmaker Oleg Sentsov is part of today’s Ukraine-Russia prisoner swap. Sentsov was arrested in June 2014 on bogus terrorism charges in annexed Crimea. Russia was targeting high-profile activists in Ukraine’s pro-democracy EuroMaidan Revolution.

https://twitter.com/paulachertok/status/473573735153139712?s=21

Sources tell human rights lawyer Mark Feygin 35 people are in today’s prisoner swap: the 24 Ukrainian sailors and these 11 others: Sentsov, Sushchenko, Panov, Kolchenko, Klykh, Karpyuk, Gryb, Sizonovich, Balukh, Panov, Bekirov

https://twitter.com/feyginmark/status/1170239530387030017?s=21

#Russia #Ukraine

First photo of Russian plane carrying 35 Ukrainian prisoners in today’s historic swap has landed in Kyiv’s Borispol Airport.
Via @ryabtchuk_roman Photo by Tsaplienko (FB) #Ukraine #Russia

Russian media confirms Vladimir #Tsemakh, suspect in Russia’s downing of MH17 and murder of all its 298 civilian passengers, is on the list of people #Ukraine has released to board a plane to #Russia in today’s prisoner swap.

Russian embassy publishes photo of those flying to #Russia in today's prisoner swap with #Ukraine. Note their faces are blurred to hide their identity. (Guess they're not worried about someone identifying the cat)

https://twitter.com/mediazzzona/status/1170273777135116288

Correction: RT posted photo with blurred faces. The Russian Embassy shows the faces of those #Ukraine released to #Russia in prisoner swap. Doesn't look like MH17 suspect #Tsemakh is in the photo, contrary to earlier Kremlin pool report.

https://twitter.com/mediazzzona/status/1170273777135116288

This is very moving to watch. Oleg Sentsov and the other prisoners/hostages are home, hugging their families. Watch livestream at Kyiv airport here: via @HromadskeUA #Russia #Ukraine

Poignant image from today’s prisoner swap—filmmaker Oleg #Sentsov’s prison shoes, left behind on the tarmac in Kyiv, home in #Ukraine after 5+ years in #Russia. Photo taken by Russian filmmaker Askold Kurov who made a film about Sentsov’s Stalinesque show trial. (via @stefsiohan)