Civilians without Russian passports denied medical care in occupied Luhansk region

The Head of the Luhansk Oblast Military Administration, Oleksii Kharchenko, reported that in the temporarily occupied Luhansk region, medical facilities have introduced checks for the presence of a Russian Federation passport. Corresponding notices have appeared at the entrances to hospitals and medical points in the settlements across the district.

Illustrative photo courtesy of open sources

“At the thresholds of medical facilities operating in the Luhansk Oblast, checks are conducted for the possession of a Russian Federation passport,” he stated.

The official clarified that in the absence of a Russian passport, patients are denied even the provision of primary medical care.

Such a practice effectively deprives some local residents of access to basic medical services and serves as yet another tool of pressure on the population in the temporarily occupied territories.

Kharchenko added that this is not the only violation committed by the Russian occupiers.

According to the official, over two thousand people have already completed training at the branch of the “Voin” centerі , which the Russians opened in Luhansk. Special courses are designed for youth aged 14 to 35. One of the most popular directions, which everyone is required to undergo, is UAV (drone) operation.

Earlier, ZMINA reported that ophthalmologists from the Russian Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) were brought to the temporarily occupied districts of the Donetsk Oblast. This is due to a critical shortage of medical personnel in the occupied territories.

Previously, Tetiana Horodianska, head of the Department of Rights of Citizens in Temporarily Occupied Territories at the Ukrainian Ombudsman’s Office, outlined methods of Russians to force the passportization of Ukrainian citizens in the TOT.

ZMINA also reported that the Eastern Human Rights Group had issued a recommendation for foreign countries to impose stricter visa controls on Russian citizens who are relocating and traveling en masse to the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.