Nov. 6 — Oleksandra Kazarovytska, co-founder of the Kharkiv-based language school Professional, died after Russian forces detained her in Russian-occupied city of Sevastopol, Crimea, the language school wrote on its Facebook account.

According to the school, Kazarovytska and her family moved frequently between different cities across the Soviet Union during her childhood because of her father’s military service. Eventually, her parents settled  Sevastopol in Crimea, while Kazarovytska remained in Kharkiv.

After Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, her family decided to relocate their elderly parents to Turkey so that Kazarovytska and her husband could care for them. In the summer of 2026, she traveled to Russian-occupied Crimea for a month to help her parents sell their house and finalize the move.

Russian officers detained Kazarovytska in Sevastopol after discovering her communications with Ukrainian volunteers in 2022. She spent three months in a single cell awaiting trial.

Kazarovytska died on Oct. 25, and her funeral was held in Sevastopol on Nov. 4. According to Russian officials, Kazarovytska committed suicide, the Russian media outlet Important Stories reported.

Iryna Salnyk, a friend of Kazarovytska, wrote that she had cleared her phone before crossing the border, but had left just one chat message undeleted.

Kazarovytska was 44 years old. She is survived by her husband, Oleksii, and her daughter, Alisa.

Earlier, a report by the UN Special Rapporteur stated that 438 Ukrainians — both civilians and military — had died in Russian captivity. The UN also documented systematic cruelty by the Russians toward Ukrainian prisoners of war.

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