Russians shot six Ukrainian prisoners of war

Russian military forces shot six Ukrainian fighters who were taken prisoner.

The corresponding video is published by Russian Telegram channels, and Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets reacted to it.

The Russians captured on video six Ukrainian soldiers being shot in the back. The video cuts off when a seventh soldier lies on the ground, his fate unknown.

During the shooting, Russian soldiers order the Ukrainian fighters to "lie down and shut their mouths," and the "cameraman" of the crime says, "One is mine," and later he is seen firing a series of bullets into the back of one of the prisoners of war.

The Ombudsman noted that he is sending information about this crime to the UN and the ICRC.

The Prosecutor Generalʼs Office has launched an investigation into the killing of Ukrainian soldiers by Russians under the article on committing a war crime. The prosecutorʼs office clarified that the soldiers were taken prisoner during an assault on positions in the Donetsk region.

Executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war

The Russians have executed at least 177 Ukrainian prisoners of war. Of the 177 confirmed cases, 109 occurred in 2024. This is data as of December 2024.

According to Dmytro Lubinets, his office learns about most cases from videos from Ukrainian special services. At the same time, there are cases when information comes directly from Ukrainian military units. In addition, the Russians publish relevant videos on social networks.

The Ukrainian side informs the International Committee of the Red Cross and the UN about cases of execution of Ukrainian prisoners of war.

Lubinets notes: The ICRC has never publicly or privately accused the Russians of murdering or torturing Ukrainian prisoners of war. But official UN reports for 2024 first revealed data that the Russians were executing Ukrainian defenders.