As of: March 31, 2024, 4:36 p.m
By: Marcus Giebel
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Finally back in freedom: At the end of January, these Ukrainian soldiers were released back home after being held captive by Russia. © IMAGO / APAimages
In the Ukraine war, prisoners experience inhumane tortures, including mock executions. A UN team provides insights after discussions with those affected.
Geneva – Not only are hundreds of thousands of people losing their lives in the Ukraine war. Equally, many others apparently renounce all humanity. This is suggested by a new UN report that reveals how prisoners of war are mistreated on both sides. Here too, Russia and therefore Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin seem to know no boundaries. In its 38th report, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) examined the human rights situation in Ukraine between December 1, 2023 and February 29, 2024.
UN report on torture in the Ukraine war: abuses are the order of the day
In addition to the civilian victims, it is also about the people who have been taken prisoner. The human rights activists spoke to 60 Ukrainian men after they were released from Russian custody. In addition, 44 Russian prisoners of war held in the Dnipro, Kharkiv, Lviv, Mikolaiv, Sumy, Vinnytsia and Zaporizhia regions were interviewed.
The Ukrainians mentioned were held by Russian troops for between several weeks and 22 months and were held in various facilities both in occupied territory and in Russia. They reported repeated torture, abuse and isolation. These are the order of the day. The prison conditions had a significant impact on their physical and mental well-being, and long-lasting consequences could not be ruled out. Similar allegations have been made for months.
Video: UN accuses Russia of serious war crimes
Torture of prisoners in the Ukrainian war: electric shocks and mock executions experienced
Fifty-eight of the 60 Ukrainians gave the OHCHR, a subsidiary body of the UN General Assembly, detailed insights into the ordeal they endured. There was talk of beatings, electric shocks and mock executions.
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A man reported that he was arrested in November 2023 in the Zaporizhia region and taken to a shed. In it, three Russian soldiers interrogated and tortured him in order to extract military information from him.
He was hit in the face and upper body, breaking several ribs. A plastic bag was also pulled over his face, almost causing him to suffocate. The soldiers also threatened to cut off his ear by pressing a knife against it and to execute him.
Torture in Russian prison camps: sleep deprivation through loud music - use of toilets as an exception
Others revealed that they were beaten while being transferred to another prison camp, during daily inspections of their cells, while walking in the courtyard or on the way to the shower. They were forced to stand for long periods of time or were exposed to the cold, for example in winter they had to move outside barefoot.
In some camps, using the toilet was only permitted if a loudspeaker was used to call for it. Some prisoners were subjected to sleep deprivation by being forced to recite numbers aloud one night at a time. In addition, loud music was played at night. 39 of the ex-prisoners interviewed said they were victims of sexual violence.
Prisoners in the Ukrainian War: Diseases spread in camps - those unable to fight are executed
Because it was very cold in the cells, especially in winter, illnesses spread among the prisoners. In one facility, prisoners were deprived of dental hygiene items for 21 months. Tuberculosis had spread in five camps.
The OHCHR documented the death of a prisoner of war as a result of torture, poor prison conditions and illness with inadequate medical care. In some cases, however, conditions have also improved, for example during visits by high-ranking officials or during a changing of the guard. Recently, Russian soldiers also made public torture and mistreatment in their own camp.
In addition, at least 32 Ukrainian prisoners of war are said to have been executed in the three months examined. There were twelve different incidents. The OHCHR was able to verify three of these cases, in which seven incapacitated Ukrainians were executed. Some soldiers are said to have used Ukrainian prisoners as protective shields.
Imprisoned: Russian prisoners of war stand lined up against a wall in a Ukrainian camp. © IMAGO / ABACAPRESS
Ukraine war and Russian prisoners: beatings on the way to the hospital
Regarding the captured Russians, among whom an army commander is said to be, the human rights activists praise the efforts of the government in Kiev led by President Volodymyr Zelensky to create conditions to accommodate the detainees in official facilities that meet international standards. However, there are also credible allegations of torture and ill-treatment here.
However, these do not refer to the time in the prison camps, but to the hours after the arrest. Eight of those surveyed were held in the basements of private buildings for several days or even a month and a half. 13 prisoners reported beatings, electric shocks and mock executions during interrogations, and two were threatened with sexual violence. According to reports, seven people were beaten on the way to a hospital in Kharkiv.
The OHCHR also emphasizes that in August 2023, Ukrainian authorities decided to establish mixed medical commissions to treat sick and wounded prisoners of war in a neutral country. Russia was asked to approve this proposal, but did not support it.
(mg)