Two Ukrainian airborne assault operators have been extracted from occupied territory by special forces after spending over 1.5 years behind enemy lines, the Ukrainian Navy said on Sept. 30.

The Navy's intelligence arm was several weeks ago informed about the two Ukrainians who had been in occupied territory since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022.

The announcement did not say in which oblast they were trapped.    

The two operators had engaged in combat against the Russians and were too seriously injured to slip out on their own. They were being concealed by local residents, according to the navy.  

The rescue was conducted by the navy's special forces unit Angels, while an airborne assault detachment provided covering fire during the extraction.

A video posted with the announcement showed two camouflage-clad men approaching and embracing another group of soldiers waiting for them.

When the full-scale invasion began, some Ukrainian troops, law enforcers and civilians stayed behind in various occupied territories to serve as spies, scouts, smugglers and assassins against the Russian forces and their local collaborators.

Russian security forces sought to find and break resistance cells, using interrogation under torture.