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Russia Opens Trial of 38 Azov POWs Who Survived the Olenivka Prison Massacre
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Russia has convicted or is currently prosecuting at least 38 Ukrainian prisoners of war from the Azov Brigade who survived the 2022 explosion at the Olenivka prison camp, according to the Media Initiative for Human Rights (MIHR) on July 28, the fourth anniversary of the attack.
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The rights organization said the known cases likely represent only part of a broader campaign, as Russian authorities have restricted public access to court records, making it difficult to determine the full scale of prosecutions.
According to the Media Initiative for Human Rights (MIHR), at least 38 former prisoners held in the so-called “Barrack 200” at Olenivka have either been sentenced or are currently facing criminal proceedings in Russia.
“According to our data, 38 Azov fighters from Barrack 200 have either been convicted or are currently on trial. But we know there are many more closed cases because Russia has shut down its court registries. As a result, virtually every Azov serviceman is now facing criminal prosecution. Some have already been handed a third case,” MIHR war crimes documenter Maria Klymyk said.
Klymyk said the convicted prisoners have been transferred to penal colonies across Russia, with contact depending on the detention facility and its administration. She also stated that Russian courts have issued convictions in absentia against some former prisoners who were released in prisoner exchanges as early as September 2022.
“They are unlawfully prosecuting even those who have already been released,” Klymyk said. According to MIHR, Russia’s closure of court registries has made it increasingly difficult to monitor ongoing proceedings, suggesting the known number of prosecutions may be incomplete.
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The statement coincides with the fourth anniversary of the Olenivka prison explosion. On the night of July 29, 2022, an explosion destroyed a barrack in Volnovakha Correctional Colony No. 120 in Russian-occupied Olenivka, where Ukrainian prisoners of war captured after the defense of Mariupol were being held.
According to Ukrainian investigators, approximately 193 Azov servicemen had been moved into the isolated barrack shortly before the blast. Authorities have identified 49 victims, while more than 140 prisoners were injured. Three bodies remain unidentified after Russia returned them in severely deteriorated condition.
Relatives of survivors and former prisoners continue to report that dozens of those seriously wounded in the explosion remain in Russian captivity. Family members say information about their condition remains limited due to restricted communication and the lack of independent access to detention facilities.
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Ukraine has accused Russia of deliberately orchestrating the attack on the prison. An internal UN analysis later concluded that available evidence was consistent with Russia being responsible for the explosion, contradicting Moscow’s claims that the facility had been struck by Ukrainian forces.
Earlier, Ukrainian officials reported that about 250 captured Azov servicemen had been convicted by Russian courts since the start of the full-scale invasion, with many prosecutions based on Russia’s designation of the Azov Brigade as a “terrorist organization” and allegations that Ukraine says are fabricated.
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