We see them crawl for a kilometer or more, toward Ukrainian trenches, then open fire at close range and try to capture positions, Col. Roman Kostenko, the chairman of the defense and intelligence committee in Ukraines Parliament, said in an interview. Audio interview produced and edited by: Amy Salit and Thea Chaloner. "The basic pitch is six months: It's going to be horrible. In the video, at least three men in camouflage, including one with a head wound and his hands tied behind his back, can be seen lying dead next to a fourth man, who is breathing heavily with a jacket covering his head. On the table next to their beds is a stack of books. They're really used as cannon fodder. But using infantry to storm trenches, redolent of World War I, brings high casualties. In addition, the prisoners of war are allowed to go for walks and bathe daily. His unit tried to return to Russia, but the commander forbade it. [+] Ukraine on the 1st anniversary of the Ukraine - Russia war in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., United States on February 25, 2023. Many are taking the deadly gamble. Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox. Investigators said more than 80% of the former Ukrainian prisoners of war interviewed complained about the insufficient amount or poor quality of food. [47] The figure of separatist prisoners was updated to 816, including 287646 civilians, in December. Scenes in the video match the scenery on Google Street View of the main road outside Dmytrivka, which is about seven miles south-west of Bucha with roads to Irpin. This is not a particularly well-educated or cultured guy. Earlier, on February 16, Tatyana Moskalkova, Commissioner for Human Rights in the Russian Federation, said that the UN had responded to Moscows appeal about the torture of Russian prisoners of war in Ukraine and was ready to join in solving the problem. Though they are prisoners of war overseen by Ukrainians, the Russians said they spoke freely. Earlier, CNN reported that prisoners for the war against Ukraine are now directly recruited by the Russian Defense Ministry. In some cases, POWs had only 45 seconds to 2 minutes to eat, including very hot food that would burn their mouths and throats. The New York Times estimated that about 40,000 inmates have joined the Russian forces roughly 10% of the country's prison population. The next group would follow after a pause of 15 or 20 minutes, then another, then another., Of his combat experience, he said, It was the first and last wave for me.. It could be, Colonel Kostenko said, that such infantry assaults on entrenched defenses will remain mostly confined to the fight for Bakhmut and that they are being used to conserve tanks and armored personnel carriers for the expected offensive. But the first set of people have already done that six months and some of them have been freed. On 11 March, Ukrainian officials claimed Major general, On 15 March, Ukrainian officials claimed Major general, On 1920 March, Russian officials confirmed that, On 15 April, Ukrainian officials claimed that, On 16 April, Russian officials said that Major General, On 30 April, Ukrainian officials claimed that Major general, On 9 July, Colonel Alexey Gorobets, Commander of the, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 20:23. This is a huge loss for all of us. His dash toward Ukrainian lines in a group of five soldiers ended with three dead and two captured. The NGO Cargo 200 reported that they documented the deaths of 1,479 Russian citizens while fighting as part of the rebel forces. 16, 2022A Ukrainian police officer stands inside a detention center used by the Russian forces for interrogations, detentions, and torture according to the Ukrainian authorities on Nov. 16, 2022. [384] The ICMP also stated a month earlier that 15,000 people were missing since the start of the Russian invasion. In October last year, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry accused the Wagner group of forcibly drafting Russian prisoners with HIV and hepatitis. WebDenis Pushilin, the Moscow-backed head of the part of Ukraine's Donetsk region that is under Russian control, said earlier that a prisoner swap with Kyiv was taking place, One woman told U.N. investigators, "I still cannot stand the sound of duct tape. The reportby the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights found that both Russia and Ukraine have captured a high number of prisoners of war. One soldier was wounded and screamed, Help me! He was balding and wore shoes without laces. Prisoners of war were cut off their genitals with a knife, opened their stomachs, cut their throats and cut off their heads <> Three WebRussia is recruiting young Palestinians and Syrians for the war against Ukraine. "In the beginning, we were told it was about humanitarian things. Another captured Russian, Eduard, 22, enlisted to get four years cut from a sentence for car theft. "It turns out that the best courageous men are dying on Ukraine's side, while the Russians are mobilizing prisoners who would have died of their illnesses in a year or so anyway.". FOLLOW MORE IBT NEWS ON THE BELOW CHANNELS, IBT Fast Start - Let the best of International News come to you. Me and my colleague, when we were researching this article, we managed to get hold of a few prisoners who are still in prison and speak with them either by text message or in other ways, and ask them how they saw this guy, why people agreed to go, why, in that case, they didn't agree to go. On Prigozhin's goal of changing Russian society. WebSTORY: Videos released by the Ukrainian secret service and the Russian defense ministry showed the prisoners returning from captivity. excluding DPR/LPR militia). Meanwhile, out of those released by the rebels, 32 were soldiers. ), He responded toan online advertisement he came across and was sent to Donetsk, which is controlled by pro-Russian separatists. "Honestly, we were deceived,"Roman, who is from Vyborg in Russia, tells us. Top Ukrainian presidential aide Andriy Yermak said that 116 Ukrainians were freed. WebPOWs or prisoners of war are people who are held captive by the other side in the conflict against the backdrop of wartime animosity. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. At the beginning of June 2015, the Donetsk region's prosecutors reported 1,592 civilians had gone missing in government-controlled areas, of which 208 had been located. The sequential assaults on Ukrainian lines by small units of former Russian prisoners have become a signature Russian tactic in the effort to capture Bakhmut. The window in the door frames the corridor at the District Police Department used by Russian occupiers for torture, Balakliia, Kharkiv Region, northeastern Ukraine. Artyomcalls the Russian army "looters and murderers" when speaking with DW. The Wagner Group forces have suffered high casualty rates in the war and have been accused of atrocities against civilians. Ukraine also tended to be quieter about its own military fatalities. So there is part of this, I think that is about this guy saying to these people, even convicted of horrific crimes, you do your time at the front and you will get redemption and you will be released back into society and you will become part of society. We've had very different figures of how many have been captured or killed or wounded. Veteran foreign correspondent Shaun Walker has written about the company that recruits and fields the mercenaries, the Wagner Group, as well as the colorful past of its founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin. They are not aggressive and are usually just waiting for a prisoner exchange. A warden kept watch this month over prisoners of war at a camp in western Ukraine. [110] Most victims among children were from the Donetsk region. And I guess in certain constituencies in Russia, that's something people find horrifying. [30], As of mid-March 2015, according to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), 1,553 separatists had been released from captivity during prisoner exchanges between the two sides. The following table does not include the 298 deaths from the shootdown of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 or the deaths of Ukrainian servicemen, which are listed separately. He continues to move, so the soldier shoots again, and he stops. But with the prisoners of war, they say, things are easier. Guards used it to immobilize their victims and start torturing them.". The report follows a separate U.N. account of widespread human rights abuses by Russia during the war. None of the prisoners DW spoke with complained about poor prison conditions or inhumane treatment. February 25, 2023 14:25 GMT. WebKYIV, Ukraine Dozens of Russian and Ukrainian prisoners of war have returned home following a prisoner swap, officials on both sides said Saturday. But I was immediately sent to the front lines." The UN General Assembly on Monday adopted a resolution that calls for Russia to pay war reparations to Ukraine, as ambassadors met to resume their emergency special session devoted to the conflict. WebDozens of Russian and Ukrainian prisoners of war have returned home following a prisoner swap, officials on both sides said Saturday. 25 killed in Belgorod (11 May 202224 Jan. 2023). [385] The following day, 31 December, 140 Ukrainian servicemen were released in a prisoner exchange, bringing the number of released prisoners from Russian captivity to 1,464 servicemen and 132 civilians. [79] The BBC further stated that "Every week, we discover new evidence of Russian military funerals in different localities of Russia, which were not reported by local authorities. Some former Ukrainian POWs recounted sporadic incidents where Russian soldiers who had captured, transported or guarded Ukrainian POWs beat them in apparent retribution for military setbacks or in the immediate aftermath of battle. The fighting would turn out to be far more dangerous than he had imagined. Vo vojne dajne zomrel Slovk, ktor bojoval na strane Rusov", " "" , "" , "" . [78], Meanwhile, Ukraine confirmed its forces had suffered 10,000 killed and 30,000 wounded by the start of June 2022,[94][95] while 7,200 troops were missing,[96] including 5,600 captured. At the end of January, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that presidential decrees pardoning prisoners recruited to fight in the war against Ukraine were classified. There he learned to drive a T-72 tank in just a few days. Prison staff say that Russian soldier Vadim S., who was also imprisoned along with the prisoners here, allegedly only confessed to shooting and killing a civilian in the Sumy region during a lie detector test. The soldiers were sitting ducks, sent forth by Russian commanders to act essentially as human cannon fodder in an assault. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis. "[Prigozhin] spent his whole 20s pretty much in jail. [citation needed] According to Ukraine, as of 30 Paul Urey and Dylan Healy, two British aid workers were captured by Russian forces,[161] Healy was charged with 'forcible seizure of power' and undergoing 'terrorist' training,[162] but later released on 22 September[163] while Urey died in captivity. "It's just so out of the realms of fantasy that this former convict is going to fly around prisons in his helicopter and offer people salvation for fighting for him at the front, and then lead these battalions of prisoners to their almost certain death. Ale konkretw brak", " . ", Asked why he went to Ukraine, Artyom says: "On television, they tell us that we are supposedly fighting for a good causebut in reality that is not the case at all. "Here are some helpful resources to make sense of it all. "It's so dystopian that it's really hard to believe. [375] Amnesty International argued that Article 13 of the Third Geneva Convention prohibits videos of captured soldiers. AP All rights reserved. His family says he's severely injured in a Russian hospital", Uzbekistan Asks Kyiv For Details On Uzbek Nationals Detained While Fighting For Russia, Uzbekistan is verifying information about the capture of two of its citizens near Balaklia. WebFeb 4, 2023, 11:52 PM SGT. Some military analysts and Western governments have questioned Russias strategy, citing rates of wounded and killed at around 70 percent in battalions featuring former convicts. Palestinians residing in Lebanon have signed up to join the ongoing conflict in Ukraine on behalf of Soldiers fighting for Ukraine appear to shoot a Russian prisoner of war outside a village west of Kyiv in a video posted online. "They simply had fun and were not interested in my replies to their questions," he told U.N. investigators. The cells are furnished with old furniture. [269], As of late May 2022, Ukrainian authorities had stored at least 137 bodies of Russian soldiers that were collected near Kyiv,[270] as well as 62 in the Kharkiv region. The women prisoners who were interviewed said that while they were not physically tortured, they were placed in cells close to where male prisoners were being beaten and tortured. The broadcaster believes the word Gruziny which means Georgians in Russian can also be heard. Such episodes lasted up to hours and took place at all times of the day and night," the report said. Kherson, UkraineNov. We were also only allowed to talk to prisoners who were not charged with war crimes and who faced no other criminal charges: Interviewing such individuals would require additional authorization from the investigators or prosecutor. Following a request by journalists to the State Penitentiary Service of Ukraine, DW became the first media outlet to speak with Russian prisoners and film in the prison. I don't consider it a sacrifice, Alex Drueke, former Russian prisoner of war, said. If you don't give your everything, we will shoot you," Walker says. Mediazona added that "the real toll is likely in the tens of thousands. But if you survive this, I've got your back. Russias War On Ukraine: News And Information From Ukraine, "Ukraine hits oil Crimean drilling platforms, pro-Russian regional head says", "Statement on summoning the ambassador of the Russian Federation to Polish MFA", Missiles kill one person and hit strategic bridge near Ukraine's Cherkasy, officials say. Ukraines foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said on Thursday he was aware of the video and it would definitely be investigated. ", "A leading ballet dancer who braved the theater of war dies at 47", " : ", " ", " " " ", "Ukrainian Developer Of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. In several cases, Russian POWs said they were stabbed or given electric shocks with the TAPik phone by Ukrainian law enforcement officers or military personnel guarding them. Documentation and identification of the bodies began with many hastily dug graves and rubble being cleared away to photograph and identify the bodies as well as count the number involved. The roots of Russia's invasion of Ukraine go back decades and run deep. The prisoners are identified only by first name and rank for security reasons, because of the possibility of retribution once they are returned. [55] The United States Department of State estimated 400500 of these were regular Russian soldiers. [53][54], Foreign volunteers have been involved in the conflict, fighting on both sides. WebAt the end of January, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that presidential decrees pardoning prisoners recruited to fight in the war against Ukraine were classified. Ukrainian prisoners described so-called "admission procedures" upon arrival at the place of internment, which involved prolonged beatings, strangling, twisting or breaking of joints or bones, attacks by dog, tasering, mock executions, sexual violence, stripping and use of stress positions. [376] Captured Ukrainian soldiers with British citizenship were recorded calling for Boris Johnson to arrange for them to be freed in exchange for pro-Kremlin Ukrainian politician Viktor Medvedchuck. [379] On 22 April, Yuri Sirovatko, Minister of Justice of the Donetsk People's Republic, claimed that some 3,000 Ukrainian prisoners of war were held in the territory of the DPR. A war crime is defined by the United Nations as a serious breach of international law committed against civilians or enemy forces during an armed conflict. The DPR stated 4,176 of its servicemen were killed and 17,379 wounded between 1 January and 22 December, "Consequently, the authors estimate that the total number of fatalities from February 24, 2022, to February 22, 2023, includes between 50,000 and 60,000 soldiers from Russian government units and private military companies, along with approximately 10,000 soldiers from the Donetsk and Luhansk militias (for a total of 60,000 to 70,000 fatalities).". 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