Photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine reported that since the end of August 2024, 79 cases of executions of Ukrainian servicemen captured by the Russian military have been recorded. These incidents occurred in areas where the Russian armed forces are conducting offensive operations, and the number of such cases has increased sharply, the mission said.
According to the UN, video and photo materials published by both Ukrainian and Russian sources showing executions or the bodies of dead soldiers were analysed. Interviews with witnesses were also conducted to confirm the reliability of the data collected.
“These incidents did not arise out of nowhere,” the UN stressed, noting that Russian officials have repeatedly called for the ill-treatment of prisoners and even executions of Ukrainian servicemen. This, according to the mission, may encourage or incite violations of international humanitarian law.
The UN mission also reported on a case where the Ukrainian military executed a wounded Russian soldier, stressing that international humanitarian law prohibits giving orders not to take prisoners or threatening to do so during hostilities.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga has already responded to the UN statements. He noted that these atrocities could become one of the largest campaigns of deliberate killing of prisoners of war in modern history. According to him, these atrocities require urgent international action and the introduction of new effective international legal instruments to bring the perpetrators to justice.
