U.S. captives ‘prayed for death’ on brutal ride from Ukraine
Even after three months of captivity that included execution threats, physical torture, solitary confinement, and food deprivation, it was the ride to freedom that nearly broke Alex Drueke, a U.S. military veteran released last week with nine other prisoners who went to help Ukraine fight off Russian invaders. His hands were bound. His head was covered by a plastic bag, and the packing tape holding it in place was secured so tightly it caused welts on his forehead. Drueke said he and fellow American prisoner Andy Huynh reached their limit in this state during the transit, which occurred in a series of vehicles from eastern Ukraine to an airport in Russia that was surrounded by armed guards. “For all we went through and all the times we thought we might die, we accepted that we might die. We were ready to die when it came. That ride was the only time that each of us independently prayed for death just to get it over with,” Drueke told The Associated Press in an interview Friday. “The mental and emotional torture of those last 24 hours in captivity, that was the worst,” he said. Drueke, 40, is healing: The swelling is going down on his head, and he’s trying to regain some of the 30 pounds (13.6 kilograms) he figures he lost eating a poor diet. But awful memories remain, and he’s unsure what comes next aside from trying to focus attention on fellow prisoners who remain in Russian hands. “The war has not ended,” he said, speaking at the home he shares with his mother and other relatives in Tuscaloosa. Drueke and Huynh, a 27-year-old fellow military veteran from Alabama, were among hundreds of Americans who went to Ukraine early on to help in the fight against Russia. On June 9, they were captured during what Drueke described as a reconnaissance mission associated with Ukraine’s international legion, composed of foreign volunteers. “Everyone else managed to make it back to the base safe,” he said. Russian soldiers took the two men to their camp, and then into Russia for “intensive interrogation.” While declining to go into specifics, Drueke said the treatment was brutal. “Every one of our human rights were violated,” he said. “We were tortured.” The men were taken back to Ukraine to a “black site” in Donetsk for nearly a month of additional interrogation, he said. They were eventually taken to an isolation cellblock within a former Ukrainian prison. There, Drueke and Huynh were forced to record propaganda statements for a Russian video camera with soldiers in the room. “On the positive side, there were times they would put us in a closet, bound and blindfolded, … while they were waiting for whatever reporter to show up, and it gave Andy and I just a few seconds to whisper things back and forth to check in on each other,” he said. “It was the first time we had talked in weeks at that point.” Eventually, after weeks of confinement that included multiple threats, it became apparent that something — either a release, a prison transfer, or execution — was in the works, said Drueke, who joined the U.S. Army Reserve after the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, and served two tours in Iraq. “We knew something was happening because our normal routine was being skewed, and they were having us clear all of our personal stuff out of the cell,” he said. But even then, the mental torture continued, he said. “One of the guards said a couple of times, ‘I’m pretty sure you guys are getting executed,’” he said. Instead, they were part of a group of 10 men who were released on September 21 in a deal brokered by Saudi Arabia. The others who were released with them were from Croatia, Morocco, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. No one relaxed until the plane was in the air and an official from Saudi Arabia explained what was happening, he said. Landing in New York after a flight from Saudi Arabia, Drueke said he and Huynh were met by a Homeland Security official from an office that investigates war crimes. Press aides with Homeland Security didn’t immediately return an email seeking comment, but the U.N. human rights investigators have said Ukrainian prisoners of war appear to be facing “systematic” mistreatment by Russian captors that include torture. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
‘We got our miracle’: Freed Americans back home in Alabama
Two U.S. military veterans who disappeared three months ago while fighting with Ukrainian forces against Russia arrived home to Alabama on Saturday, greeted by hugs, cheers, and tears of joy at the state’s main airport. Alex Drueke, 40, and Andy Huynh, 27, had gone missing on June 9 in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine near the Russian border. The Alabama residents were released as part of a prisoner exchange. The pair had traveled to Ukraine on their own and bonded over their shared home state. “It’s them!” a family member shouted as the pair appeared at the top of an escalator at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in Birmingham, one of Alabama’s largest cities. Smiling but looking tired, the two were pulled into long emotional hugs by family members after their connecting flight home. Then they were whisked to a waiting car. “Surreal. I still have chill bumps. I always imagined this day. I always held not just hope but belief in this day. But I thought it was going to be two or three years from now at best,” said Drueke’s aunt, Dianna Shaw. “There are prisoners of war who have been held for months and years. There are people who have been detained wrongfully for years, and for this to come about in three months is, just, unimaginable to me,” she added. “Even though I’m living it, it feels unimaginable, and I don’t want people to forget all the Ukrainians who are still being held.” The families of the two men announced their release on Wednesday. The men were among ten prisoners released by Russian-backed separatists as part of a prisoner exchange mediated by Saudi Arabia. The Saudi embassy said five British nationals and others from Morocco, Sweden, and Croatia also were freed. Darla Black, whose daughter is engaged to Huynh, said she thought, “there he is. There he is,” as Huynh came into view. “I had to get my hands on him to actually believe it. I’m just overwhelmed with gratitude. We got our miracle,” Black said. The men had arrived Friday at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. “We’re looking forward to spending time with family, and we’ll be in touch with the media soon,” Drueke said shortly after arriving in New York with Huynh. “Happy to be home.” Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Russian separatists release 10, including 2 Alabama veterans
Two U.S. military veterans who disappeared three months ago while fighting Russia with Ukrainian forces were among ten prisoners, including five British nationals, released by Russian-backed separatists as part of a prisoner exchange mediated by Saudi Arabia, officials said Wednesday. Alex Drueke, 40, and Andy Huynh, 27, went missing in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine near the Russian border on June 9. Both had traveled to Ukraine on their own and became friends because both are from Alabama. The families announced their release in a joint statement from Dianna Shaw, an aunt of Drueke. “They are safely in the custody of the U.S. embassy in Saudi Arabia, and after medical checks and debriefing, they will return to the states,” the statement said. Shaw said both men have spoken with relatives and are in “pretty good shape,” according to an official with the U.S. embassy. The Saudi embassy released a statement saying it helped secure the release of ten prisoners from Morocco, the United States, the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Croatia. Shaw confirmed that Drueke and Huynh were part of the group. The United Kingdom said five British nationals had been released, and lawmaker Robert Jenrick said one of them was Aiden Aslin, 28, who had been sentenced to death after he was captured in eastern Ukraine. “Aiden’s return brings to an end months of agonizing uncertainty for Aiden’s loving family in Newark, who suffered every day of Aiden’s sham trial but never lost hope. As they are united as a family once more, they can finally be at peace,” Jenrick tweeted. British Prime Minister Liz Truss heralded the release on social media. “Hugely welcome news that five British nationals held by Russian-backed proxies in eastern Ukraine are being safely returned, ending months of uncertainty and suffering for them and their families,” she tweeted. Russian state television had previously said Drueke and Huynh were being held by Russian-backed separatist forces in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. The U.S. does not recognize the sovereignty of the Donetsk People’s Republic and has no diplomatic relations with them, which made it necessary for others to lead efforts to get the men released. Drueke joined the Army at age 19 after the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, and he believed he could help Ukrainian fighters because of his training and experience with weapons, Shaw said previously. Drueke left in mid-April. Druke’s mother received a call from Saudi Arabia on Wednesday morning, and an embassy worker handed the phone to the man, Shaw said. “He got on the phone and said, ‘Hi mom, it’s your favorite child,’” she said. Huynh moved to north Alabama two years ago from his native California and lives about 120 miles (193 kilometers) from Drueke. Before leaving for Europe, Huynh told his local newspaper, The Decatur Daily, he couldn’t stop thinking about Russia’s invasion. “I know it wasn’t my problem, but there was that gut feeling that I felt I had to do something,” Huynh told the paper. “Two weeks after the war began, it kept eating me up inside, and it just felt wrong. I was losing sleep. … All I could think about was the situation in Ukraine.” Huynh told his fiance he wants a meal from McDonald’s and a Pepsi-Cola when he returns home, Shaw said. The two men bonded over their home state and were together when their unit came under heavy fire. Relatives spoke with Drueke several times by phone while the two were being held. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Missing military vets’ families meet with Ukraine officials
The families of two military veterans from Alabama who are missing in Ukraine this week met virtually with federal government officials and Ukraine’s ambassador, Oksana Markarova, and participated in two Ukrainian-American events to observe that country’s Independence Day. Alex Drueke, 39, and Andy Huynh, 27, went missing after their unit came under heavy fire in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine near the Russian border on June 9. “It was wonderful to hear first-hand from the Ambassador that Alex and Andy are a priority along with all their prisoners of war,” Drueke’s mother, Bunny Drueke, said after Thursday’s conversation with Markarova and six members of the U.S. Department of State. “She also agreed to help us get a letter to President (Volodymyr) Zelensky thanking him for calling our men heroes and asking him not to forget them.” Huynh’s fiancee, Joy Black, said she was glad to be able to tell Markarova why he wanted to help Ukraine, according to a statement from the families. “It just laid on Andy’s heart to see teenage boys in Ukraine joining the Army to try to protect their homes,” she said. “Andy felt called to help, and Alex did too, and I could tell that touched her.” Drueke and Huynh are believed to have been taken into the Donetsk region. Russia and the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic currently control the majority of the region. The U.S. does not recognize the sovereignty of the DPR and has no diplomatic relations with them, making it necessary for Ukraine to lead efforts to get the men released. Neither Russia nor the DPR has confirmed any information about the missing men. Drueke, an Army veteran, served two tours in Iraq, while Huynh served four years in the U.S. Marines. Both Black and Bunny Drueke also recently participated in two Ukrainian-American events in Huntsville and Birmingham to celebrate Ukraine’s Independence Day. “The more Ukrainians I meet, the more I understand why Alex fell in love with the people and the place when he got there,” Bunny Drueke said. “They love freedom the same way we do in America.” The families’ statement did not provide any details about the men’s current status. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
Mom of U.S. veteran held in Ukraine speaks to son by phone
The mother of a U.S. military veteran who went missing after he traveled to help Ukraine in its fight against Russia has spoken with her son by telephone, the family said Wednesday. Lois “Bunny” Drueke, of Tuscaloosa, answered a call from what appeared to be a Russian exchange and talked to son Alex Drueke on Tuesday for nearly 10 minutes in their first conversation since he and Andy Huynh, another Alabama veteran who traveled to Ukraine, were captured after a fight earlier this month in Ukraine. Apparently, at the prompting of his captors, Drueke said the people holding him were anxious to begin negotiations and that he had food, water, and bedding, Bunny Drueke said in a statement released by her family. “He sounded tired and stressed, and he was clearly reciting some things he had been made to practice or read, but it was wonderful to hear his voice and know he’s alive and alright,” she said. Drueke said he hadn’t been in contact with Huynh for several days, according to the woman. The United States has said both men should be protected as prisoners of war under the Geneva Conventions. Huyhn’s fiance, Joy Black, said his family was thrilled that Drueke was able to speak with his mother. “We are still hoping to get a similar communication from Andy,” she said. Druke and Huynh didn’t return to a meeting spot after their group came under heavy fire in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine near the Russian border on June 9. The two traveled separately to help Ukraine and became buddies there in part because of their shared Alabama background, relatives have said. The U.S. State Department said it was looking into reports that Russian or Russian-backed separatist forces in Ukraine had captured at least two American citizens. If confirmed, they would be the first Americans fighting for Ukraine known to have been captured since the war began on February 24. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
U.S. veterans missing in Ukraine formed bond over background
Alex Drueke and Andy Huynh are both military veterans from Alabama, so it was natural that they formed a bond once they met in Ukraine, where each traveled separately with the intention of helping defend democracy against Russian invaders. “They became buds,” Dianna Shaw, Drueke’s aunt, said in an interview Thursday. Both men are now missing after their group came under heavy fire in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine near the Russian border on June 9, leaving loved ones at home anxiously awaiting information about their whereabouts. The two families are in touch. “The waiting is the hard part, but we always knew this was a possibility,” Shaw said. The U.S. State Department said it was investigating unconfirmed reports that Russian or Russian-backed forces captured two American citizens and possibly a third. Anyone captured should be considered a prisoner of war and protected by guarantees of humane treatment, and fair trials said spokesman Ned Price. “Anyone who is fighting with Ukraine’s armed forces should be treated as a POW even if Russia refuses to do that,” Price said. If the unconfirmed reports are true, they would be the first Americans fighting for Ukraine known to have been captured since the war began. Shaw said it’s possible the two could just be lying low: She noted that the 39-year-old Drueke had extensive training and experience during two tours in Iraq, while Huynh, 27, served four years in the U.S. Marines. “They know how to evade,” she said. “They might be doing just that.” Russia hasn’t confirmed any information about the men. The president of the separatist Donetsk People’s Republic, Denis Pushilin, said Thursday that “as of now, I don’t have such information, and I cannot comment,“ according to the Interfax news agency. Pushilin spoke while attending the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Huynh’s fiancee, Joy Black, said she got a message from a soldier telling her that both men had missed their rendezvous point and were in an area that was hit “pretty hard.” Black, speaking in an interview with WAAY-TV, said she ran to her mother’s room and fell on the bed sobbing. “I am trying to stay strong for him to get this word out and to try to get him back home. I am not going to lie and say that it has not been really, really hard,” Black said. It’s unclear how many Americans have traveled overseas to assist Ukraine since fighting began in February but the number is believed to be in the hundreds, if not more. Army veteran Harrison Jozefowicz, who quit his job as a Chicago police officer and traveled to Ukraine soon after Russia invaded, is now helping place volunteers in combat positions and coordinating supplies as head of a group called Task Force Yankee. Several hundred Americans serve in the International Legion of Defense of Ukraine, he said, and still more are assisting outside the force. “In the volunteer world, the people who are here for the long haul are digging in and getting serious — buying warehouses, establishing permanent routes of logistics with dedicated drivers,” he said Thursday. Shaw said her nephew joined the Army at age 19 after the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and he believed he could help Ukrainian fighters because of his training and experience with weapons. Drueke pondered whether to go for a few weeks, she said, and then made up his mind. “He approached me and said, ‘I’m going to go to Ukraine.’ I told him, ‘For you, that makes sense,’” she said. “He is really compelled to defend democracy wherever that meant going.” Huynh moved to north Alabama two years ago from his native California and lives about 120 miles (193 kilometers) from Drueke. Before leaving for Europe, Huynh told his local newspaper, The Decatur Daily, he couldn’t stop thinking about Russia’s invasion. “I know it wasn’t my problem, but there was that gut feeling that I felt I had to do something,” Huynh told the paper. “Two weeks after the war began, it kept eating me up inside and it just felt wrong. I was losing sleep. … All I could think about was the situation in Ukraine.” Drueke doesn’t have a wife or children, his aunt said, and he liked the idea of traveling to help Ukraine so someone with more familial connections wouldn’t have to. He left in mid-April and entered Poland legally before going to the border and being allowed into Ukraine, she said. Now, Drueke’s loved ones are in touch with the U.S. State Department, congressional offices or anywhere else that can help them find out what’s going on. And they’re waiting. “It was how we lived while he was in Iraq, and it’s how we live now,” Shaw said. Republished with the permission of The Associated Press.
