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Russian Commanders Are Encouraging Executions of Ukrainian POWs, ISW Reports

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Ivan_khomenko
Ivan Khomenko
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Russian Commanders Are Encouraging Executions of Ukrainian POWs, ISW Reports
Russian troops on an armored personnel carrier (APC). Illustrative Photo. (Source: Russian Media)

The American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has reported a rise in the executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) by Russian military forces. Their latest reports suggest that Russian commanders may be permitting, encouraging, or even directly ordering these acts.

On October 1 was reported about Russian troops executed 16 Ukrainian POWs in the Pokrovsk direction. ISW is actively monitoring footage and accounts related to these executions, indicating a trend of violence against Ukrainian POWs across various frontlines, often seemingly with the tacit approval of some Russian commanders.

Additionally, the report highlights that Russian military bloggers frequently praise these executions, reflecting a broader culture that could be enabling systematic killings of Ukrainian soldiers.

Earlier, the Ukrainian analytical project Deepstate reported that on October 10, Russian forces executed nine Ukrainian soldiers who had surrendered in the Kursk region, near the village of Zelenyi Shlyakh, after the troops ran out of ammunition.

Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukrainian Parliament’s Commissioner for Human Rights, condemned these actions as significant violations of the Geneva Conventions governing the treatment of prisoners of war. He has called on the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross to investigate these incidents.

In light of these reports, the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine has launched a criminal investigation. Prosecutor General Andrii Kostin emphasized that the killing of POWs represents a serious breach of international humanitarian law.

ISW reports that Ukrainian law enforcement authorities have documented at least 93 instances of Ukrainian POWs being executed by Russian soldiers, with 80% of these incidents occurring in 2024. Analysts have observed shift in the treatment of Ukrainian prisoners by Russian servicemen since November 2023.

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