In September 2026, Ukraine continued efforts to return children deported or forcibly transferred by Russia and those trapped in occupied territories, while strengthening international cooperation, sanctions, accountability and reintegration. 132 children were returned this month, bringing the total to 2,657. Key developments: 🔹 Canada, Ukraine and Norway co-hosted the Pathways to Peace conference in Toronto on 28–29 September, bringing together 83 delegations. A total of 54 states and organisations endorsed the Toronto Pledge, committing to concrete action on return and reintegration. Honduras became the 52nd member of the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children. 🔹 Canada announced nearly CAD 7 million in support for child protection, reintegration and civil society, including projects involving @SaveukraineUs and @UNICEF. Norway allocated approximately USD 25 million to UNICEF and the ICRC. 🔹 At the UN General Assembly, new research estimated that around 1.6 million Ukrainian children in occupied territories face Russian indoctrination and militarisation. At least 582,600 school-aged children have been subjected to Russian-controlled curricula and youth organisations. 🔹 The EU sanctioned 10 individuals and 17 entities involved in Russia's deportation, forcible transfer and forced assimilation of Ukrainian children. Canada imposed sanctions on eight additional Russian officials. 🔹 On 18 September, the US adopted legislation explicitly identifying the forcible transfer and deportation of Ukrainian children as grounds for sanctions, creating an additional mechanism for accountability. 🔹 On 22 September, the European Court of Human Rights held a hearing concerning ten Ukrainian children taken from care institutions in occupied Crimea. Russia concealed their whereabouts and later listed them on a Russian adoption website. 🔹 Ukraine's Security Service notified two more occupation officials of suspicion over the deportation of 31 children from occupied Donetsk to Russia in 2022 under the pretext of a health improvement programme. 🔹 @BringKidsBackUA and Ukraine's Parliament launched a parliamentary diplomacy platform to strengthen international advocacy through verified evidence, legal expertise and coordinated action. 🔹 Maria Lvova-Belova acknowledged that 380 Ukrainian children from occupied regions had been placed with Russian families. She also confirmed that their photographs were deliberately blurred online to obstruct identification. 🔹 At a @PACE_News Parliamentary Network hearing in Paris, representatives of international institutions called for stronger tracing, return and accountability mechanisms for deported Ukrainian children. 🔹 The Lost Childhood exhibition opened in Accra, Ghana, bringing Ukrainian and Ghanaian artists together to raise awareness of Russia's crimes against Ukrainian children. As of September 2026, Ukraine's Ministry of Justice had officially confirmed 20,651 cases of deportation and forcible transfer of Ukrainian children. The real number is likely much higher. Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian children remain under Russian control. There can be no just and lasting peace without their return. #BringKidsBack #ChildrenAreNonNegotiable #TrackingTheTaken