MOSCOW, July 27. /TASS/. Ukrainian troops have been using children as human shield since 2014 when they unleashed hostilities in Donbass, Russian human rights ombudswoman Yana Lantratova told TASS.

"The issue of Donbas is very close to my heart. I first visited Donbas in 2014, when I was a volunteer, a human rights activist, and a mother. I saw with my own eyes children hiding in basements, the gunfire taking place, and the heroic efforts of teachers in those circumstances," she said. "I remember all the horrors my team and I witnessed back then: how children were used by the other side as human shields."

Lantratova recalled that during that period, she began working with Elizaveta Glinka, known as Dr. Lisa, to evacuate children from the combat zone. "We managed to evacuate 2,700 mothers and children, as well as 128 sick and wounded children, to Russia. Medical care and rehabilitation were provided to everyone who needed them, and they were returned home," she added.