Ukrainian Refugee Child at Centre of Italy-Kyiv Adoption Dispute; 82 Other Cases Under Review

An Italian court has approved the adoption of a Ukrainian teenager who was evacuated to the country in 2022, sparking an international dispute with Kyiv over whether the child should remain in Italy or be returned to his living mother in Ukraine. The case has raised questions about how host countries are handling wartime child evacuations and whether some placements have crossed the line from temporary refuge into permanent adoption against the wishes of surviving parents.

The Case of Sasha

The boy, identified as Sasha and now 15 years old, was evacuated to Lecce in southern Italy in 2022 as part of a larger group of Ukrainian children seeking temporary safety during Russia's invasion. According to CNN reporting, the juvenile court in Lecce approved his adoption by the Italian family that had been fostering him since his arrival, making him a permanent resident of Italy rather than a refugee able to return home.

The decision carries particular weight because of Sasha's family circumstances. His father went missing while fighting against Russian forces, and his mother remains alive in Ukraine, never having lost her parental rights. According to available sources, his two sisters have been permitted to return to Ukraine, leaving Sasha isolated from his remaining family.

The Albanese Labor Government is delivering on its election commitment to undertake an independent investigation into historic Republic of Korea-Australia intercountry adoptions.

Recently the Government commenced the investigation and appointed Magistrate Robert Cook to lead it. The Government has now released the Terms of Reference and is inviting adoptees to express their interest in sharing adoption files and personal experiences.

Following the Republic of Korea's Truth and Reconciliation Commission report, this process will support a deeper understanding of the impacts of historic adoption practices on Australian adoptees and their families, while also shedding light on Australia's role in the program.

The independent investigation into historical intercountry adoptions from the Republic of Korea to Australia will review adoptions from the Republic of Korea to Australia between 1964 and 1999. It responds to long-standing concerns raised by adoptees, families and advocates and aims to understand Australia's role in these adoptions.

In last month's Budget, the Government invested an additional $4.1 million over four years to boost support for individuals and families impacted by intercountry adoption through Intercountry Adoptee and Family Support Services (ICAFSS).

The governor says policy has already saved lives, while ACLU called the decision ‘a painful setback’

This story was originally published by Source New Mexico.

The New Mexico Supreme Court on Monday sided with Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and unanimously denied a petition filed last month requesting reversal of a policy mandating the removal of newborns exposed to drugs and alcohol.

The case stems from a July 2025 directive the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department issued requiring staff to take immediate custody of newborns with diagnoses of fetal alcohol syndrome or substance-exposure with “no exceptions.”

In 2019, the New Mexico Legislature updated its mandatory reporting laws to include language that a pregnant women using or abusing drugs “shall not alone form a sufficient basis to report child abuse or neglect.”

Lynda Hall grew up wondering where she came from.

At 17, she worked up the courage to ask her adoptive parents about her birth mother, wanting to know more than the story of a “beautiful, young woman who happened to be pregnant.”

They shared her biological mother’s last name, the age she gave birth and where she was from. Then, Hall took those clues and retraced her family tree, combing through newspapers, birth and death notices and city directories.

Her research led her to Thunder Bay, Ont., where, at 25, she met with the relatives who connected her to her biological mother. 

“It was pretty wild,” Hall said, now 63, recalling how her mother shared parts of her life, including surviving abusive relationships. “She then asked, ‘Do you still want to have anything to do with me?’” 

Criminal markets often treat human beings as commodities. Victims of human trafficking are bought and sold mainly for forced labour or sex, while migrants are smuggled for a price, sometimes under conditions that cost them their lives. There is even a black market for babies.

Over the past 70 years, as many as 10 000 babies have allegedly disappeared from maternity hospitals across Serbia under questionable circumstances.1

After months of investigation, which covered several ministries, local self-government authorities and health care and other institutions, the Serbian Ombudsman identified a number of omissions in the work of competent public authorities and institutions vested with public powers, which are listed in the relevant sections of the Report of the Protector of Citizens on the So-called “Missing Babies” Cases with Recommendations, Protector of Citizens, Belgrade, 29 July 2010, https://www.ombudsman.org.rs/attachments/article/117/Missing%20babies%20cases%20report%20-%20Serbian%20ombudsman.doc. Close footnote

The story is always the same: parents are told that their child died after birth, but they were neither allowed to see the child’s body nor told where it was buried. As one mother testified in 2018 about her 1988 case, ‘a doctor came to me and told me … that my baby was dead. They said it was better not to see the dead child because I would remember that image for the rest of my life.’2

Adriana Jankovic, ‘Idi kući, rađaćeš još Potresne ispovesti roditelja koji sumnjaju da su im deca ukradena u porodilištu, Blic, 12 February 2018, https://www.blic.rs/vesti/drustvo/idi-kuci-radjaces-jos-potresne-ispovesti-roditelja-koji-sumnjaju-da-su-im-deca/ls1hl1f. Close footnote

Sophie was adopted from South Korea to Germany as a baby. She had a happy childhood, yet one question haunted her: Why was I given away? In her early twenties, she traveled to Korea, determined to finally find answers. She pored over files, visited a hospital, and was surprisingly moved by a photograph in a police station. Suddenly, her biological family seemed within reach. The story explores themes of belonging, transnational adoptions after the Korean War, and the question of whether international adoptions should even be legal. Sophie recounts her search for her origins, identity, and family. Can she truly find her biological family? Authors: Linh Tran and Sarah Zaheer Director: Oliver Martin Producers: Peter Avar and Ulli Hieber Editor: Kim Neubauer If you enjoyed this episode of Deep Doku, you might also like this episode: “Searching for Father in Mozambique – Sandra's Dad Was a Contract Worker in East Germany” https://1.ard.de/vatersuche_mosambik 

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Research Assistant Intercountry Adoption

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06-07-2026

With your eye for detail and strong interest in academic research and human rights themes, you will support our client at the Faculty of Law with research into the aftermath of intercountry adoption, assist in organizing an international academic conference, and maintain a scholarly networking website. Additionally, you will conduct and process various interviews regarding this subject.

Working hours can be flexibly scheduled in consultation with the client, depending on your availability, between 8 and 16 hours per week. It is possible to work remotely and at times that suit you. Ideally, you can start in July, and the appointment runs until the end of this year, with the possibility of extension.

The hourly wage for this position is between €18.56 and €19.07. Additionally, you will receive a holiday allowance of 8% and an end-of-year bonus of 8.3%.

If you are interested, please apply via the button below. For more information or questions, you can contact Didier Tripels via bureau@interum.umholding.nl or by phone at 043 388 2688.

How did Sofia Nordgren’s childhood experiences shape her search for biological family and adoption truth?

Sofia Nordgren is an international speaker, author, moderator, transformation coach, entrepreneur, and advocate for adoptee rights, identity, family reunification, and social justice, with more than 30 years of professional experience in health, wellbeing, leadership, coaching, and personal development.

With a professional background in nursing, coaching, leadership, and personal development, she has spent more than three decades supporting people facing trauma, grief, stress-related conditions, mental health challenges, identity issues, major life transitions, and personal growth. Her experience spans primary healthcare, mental health services, occupational health, elder care, health promotion, education, leadership, and coaching. She is trained as an ICC-certified coach and NLP Practitioner and has pursued continued professional development in areas including ACT, trauma, resilience, communication, attachment, belonging, identity, and psychological wellbeing.

Nordgren is the founder and CEO of Lifestyle+ in Sweden. Through speaking, coaching, writing, facilitation, moderation, and education, she supports individuals and organizations in navigating change, adversity, identity challenges, leadership development, wellbeing, and personal transformation.

Jonah Bevin shares allegations of abuse, neglect as judge orders former Kentucky governor’s arrest for failing to provide court records

KENTUCKY, Ky. (WKYT) - For the first time, Jonah Bevin is sharing his side of the story in an ongoing child support case against his adoptive father, former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, as a judge issued an arrest order for the former governor.

The judge issued the arrest order after Matt Bevin failed to provide the court all requested records in the case. The order gives all peace officers in the commonwealth the authority to arrest Bevin. After his arrest, he will have to serve 60 days in jail and pay a $500 fine.

In an interview with WKYT, Jonah spoke about what it was like living with the Bevins and shared his thoughts on the legal fight currently going on.

"Don't let go of my hand, Mom." These were the words of a daughter afraid of getting lost in a huge crowd. Eventually, these words marked the instant Shivani Schulz's entire life just changed. Around 20 years ago, Shivani was a little girl navigating the chaos of a busy New Delhi railway station, clinging tightly to her mother while keeping an eye on her younger brother. Within moments, her mother vanished into the crowd and never came back. Today, the young woman is a wife and a mother whose adoption story has moved millions of people across the internet. But beneath all that is a childhood built on trauma and years spent not knowing what comes next. 

“I don't remember what my birth mother looks like”

When people look at Shivani's life today, it can be difficult to picture the pain that quietly shaped who she became. “My earliest memories were not happy ones,” she says. She describes growing up in a household full of fear. She had an abusive father and a mother who was terrified but doing everything she could to protect her children. In a separate video posted on Instagram, Shivani opened up about how her memory of her birth mother has faded with time. “I don't remember what she looks like. I don't remember her name. We were so young that all I remember is how I felt around her, which was her fear.” “The only memories I have are of my birth dad physically beating her, yelling at her, and then her letting go of my hand,” she says.

The day childhood ended for her…

When Shivani and her little brother lost their mother at the railway station, everything changed in an instant. What followed next was something no child is ever supposed to face alone. While other children her age were worrying about playgrounds and homework, Shivani suddenly found herself carrying a far heavier weight. “I became my little brother's protector. His survival became more important than my own fear.” Eventually, a policeman found the siblings and took them to an orphanage