On July 28, in the central square of Kyiv Maidan Nezalezhnosti, the “FREE AZOV” commemoration day took place to mark the second year after the attack on Olenivka prison camp.
On the night of July 28 to 29, 2022, an explosion occured at a penal colony in Russian-occupied Olenivka, Donetsk Region. The attack resulted in the deaths of at least 54 Ukrainian prisoners of war, who were defenders of Mariupol, and left over 150 others injured.
To honor the soldiers who died, an exhibition titled Olenivka: Quintessence of Cruelty was opened in central Kyiv. This exhibition was organized by the Association of Families of Defenders of the Azovstal Plant in collaboration with the National Museum of the Revolution of Dignity.
Ukrainian authorities have labeled the Olenivka attack as a deliberate Russian war crime, asserting that Russia either struck the prison with artillery or orchestrated an internal explosion.
The United Nations recently published a report on July 25, 2024, stating that Russia has continuously blocked international efforts to independently investigate the Olenivka attack and has contaminated evidence at the site. The report underscores that prisoners of war are protected under international humanitarian law, which mandates their humane treatment and calls for transparent investigations and prosecutions of any abuses—a law that the Russian government has systematically violated since the beginning of its full-scale invasion in Ukraine.
The Azov Regiment’s press service released a statement urging the public to share information about the tragedy. They warned that “the Russians rely on the short memory of the world community, on forgetting its crimes and their own propaganda” to evade punishment.
“Wounded Azov men were carrying the bodies of their brothers. Those who could be saved were left to die by the occupiers,” the statement added.
