A court in Rostov-na-Donu, Russia, has sentenced 15 Ukrainian prisoners of war from the Aidar battalion to terms ranging from 15 to 21 years in a maximum-security prison.
This is reported by the Russian publication "Mediazona".
In total, 18 Ukrainians were involved in this case. Two female doctors were previously returned to Ukraine as part of a prisoner exchange, and the case of one of the drivers was separated into a separate proceeding — his further fate is unknown.
None of the servicemen were charged with war crimes — the Russian court found the very fact of serving in the Ukrainian army a crime. Even the medics were held accountable, explaining this by the fact that providing aid to the wounded “maintained the combat capability of the unit.”
During the hearings, the prisoners spoke about the torture they had suffered in captivity. When it was time for the defense to make their statements, the court was closed to the audience and the press, citing the "wide resonance" of the case and "threats to the participants in the trial."
- The Russians regularly hold trials of Ukrainians. For example, on August 8, a court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Azov fighter Vladislav Shpak to 21 years in a maximum-security prison. 54-year-old Ukrainian Elena Ipatova was also sentenced to five years and two months in prison. She was found guilty of participating in a terrorist community.
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