Russian army executed hundreds of Ukrainian POWs since 2022, Kyiv says
Kyiv Reports Hundreds of Ukrainian Prisoners of War Executed by Russian Forces Since 2022
A Personal Tragedy Reflects a Broader Pattern
Russian army executed hundreds of Ukrainian - Lyudmyla Dubnytska's final communication with her husband contained a haunting prediction. In her last message, Andriy Dubnytsky indicated he anticipated being taken prisoner by Russian troops. Merely forty-eight hours afterward, she identified his remains within a social media video displaying deceased Ukrainian soldiers. Andriy, who was twenty-five years old when he fell in February 2024, became one of numerous captives that Ukrainian authorities claim Moscow has systematically put to death following the commencement of its comprehensive military campaign in 2022.
The precise count remains uncertain, fluctuating based on various Ukrainian and global sources. Nevertheless, Kyiv maintains that these killings demonstrate a calculated strategy orchestrated by the Kremlin. Andriy was serving with the 110th brigade when he perished during the Ukrainian retreat from Avdiivka, a critical battleground in eastern Ukraine that had been seized by Russian forces. Injured while attempting to withdraw, the young soldier remained at his post alongside five fellow combatants, four of whom had also sustained wounds. Despite these dire circumstances, the group maintained hope for evacuation.
The Final Days Captured in Messages and Video
On February 15, Andriy contacted his wife, who described him as "extremely nervous and was crying," according to Dubnytska's statement to the AFP news agency. The couple had previously promised to welcome a son together upon their reunion, providing a sibling for their young daughter. Hours after that emotional phone call, Andriy transmitted another message indicating they would likely be captured. Following this communication, he ceased all responses.
Ukrainian media subsequently released footage illuminating what probably transpired. Fellow combatant Ivan Zhytnyk was engaged in a video call with a family member when a Russian soldier commanded him to surrender his weapons. Two days later, Lyudmyla encountered Russian social media content showing five corpses resting in a frozen puddle, their surfaces marked with blood. She immediately recognized the distinctive cross tattoo on one of the men's hands—her husband.
"This stems from a Russian policy that has effectively encouraged and enabled such crimes, with commanders then issuing orders to that effect," Andriy Atamantchuk, an official with the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office overseeing the issue of POW executions, said.
Official Investigations and Growing Numbers
The 110th brigade verified that multiple soldiers, including both Dubnytsky and Zhytnyk, had been killed, alleging that Russian forces breached an agreement to evacuate them. Ukrainian prosecutors initiated proceedings concerning the "shooting of unarmed Ukrainian prisoners of war." Multiple Ukrainian representatives informed AFP that Russian troops escalated their "executions" beginning in 2023.
A United Nations report published last month documented 129 confirmed executions of Ukrainian captives, with the organization raising concerns the previous year regarding a "marked increase" in such incidents. According to Atamantchuk, Kyiv has established 116 investigations addressing the deaths of 306 Ukrainian servicemen since 2022. He emphasized that the actual figure is probably substantially greater.
A Ukrainian intelligence representative disclosed to AFP that they have monitored "more than 900 military personnel" eliminated in "more than 340" separate incidents since 2022. Speaking anonymously, this source suggested these figures might account for "between 25 and 40 percent" of all such occurrences. The sources explained that methodological differences explain the numerical variations. The prosecutor's office depends on "documented and proven facts," whereas intelligence agencies obtain "information more quickly" from frontline units and alternative channels.
Legal Framework and Historical Context
Moscow has consistently dismissed allegations of war crimes while simultaneously accusing Kyiv of perpetrating similar offenses. Under the Geneva Conventions, soldiers qualify as prisoners of war and receive corresponding protections beginning when they issue an unambiguous surrender. Ukrainian intelligence indicates that the Russian Wagner paramilitary organization, which was dismantled following its 2023 uprising, contributed to "setting the tone" for executions through its membership of former prisoners, numerous of whom had been convicted of violent offenses.
Ukraine reports that victims are most frequently shot. In 2023, a widely shared social media clip depicted a Russian soldier firing upon a Ukrainian combatant who had shouted "Glory to Ukraine." Ukrainian investigators have additionally alleged instances of extraordinarily brutal killings, including decapitations, with photographic evidence circulating on Russian platforms.
For Dubnytska, learning the identity of her husband's killer would be "senseless," she said.
To date, only five Russian soldiers have received convictions within Ukraine, including two tried in absentia, prosecutor Atamantchuk revealed to AFP. The investigations face considerable complexity stemming from limited access to active combat regions, which hampers judicial processes. Atamantchuk expressed continued optimism about eventually "do[ing] justice" to affected families, even if merely by providing "the names of those who killed their loved ones." For Dubnytska, however, discovering her husband's murderer's identity would remain "senseless," she concluded.