In Russian captivity 90% of Ukrainians are subjected to torture and abuse

90% of prisoners of war are subjected to physical and moral torture, said Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andriy Kostin. This is evidenced by the screening of those who returned from Russian captivity. The methods used by Russia can be characterized as a system of torture and inhumane treatment of people under its control.

This was stated by the Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andriy Kostin during a workshop for the media on the international law of armed conflicts and holding the Russian Federation accountable for international crimes.

“The first so-called screening – an informal conversation with prisoners of war who are now returning – shows that up to 90% of Ukrainians suffer from various kinds of torture, inhumane treatment, physical, in particular sexual, and mental violence,” he said.

He noted that the Russian system is cruel and merciless to those who fall under its control. In the occupied territories and in Russia itself, people are subjected to torture and inhumane treatment.

Exchange of prisoners with the Russian Federation.

Yuriy Taraniuk, a representative of the Coordinating Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, said that more than 8,000 people are currently in captivity, including more than 1,600 civilians. But tens of thousands of people, both civilians and prisoners of war, remain missing.

Negotiations with Russia regarding the exchange of prisoners of war are ongoing. However, the Russian Federation does not agree to conduct them. Dmytro Lubinets, the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, said that the Russian Federation was offered an exchange of prisoners of war in the period from March 31 to April 10, that is, between the Catholic Easter and the Muslim fast of Oraza-Bayram. There was one Catholic and 146 Muslims in the list of Ukraine. However, the Russian Federation did not hear the call.

Recently, a video of abuse of Ukrainian prisoners in the Kharkiv direction appeared on the Internet. The Russians forced the captured defenders to sing the anthem of the Soviet Union, and also inflicted blows. In the video, the Russian military did not even hide their faces. Ukrainian soldiers had their faces covered and their hands tied.