More than 95% of Ukrainian prisoners of war have been tortured in Russian captivity, which constitutes a war crime, Danielle Bell, head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, told Dutch television channel NOS.
Following the recent prisoner exchange, Ukrainian soldiers revealed horrific acts of torture in POW camps in Russia, where captured Ukrainians were fed dog food. Those who returned from Russian captivity recalled repeated beatings to the point of losing consciousness and other forms of physical and mental abuse.
“They are tortured during the first interrogation. They are beaten with metal rods and sticks and subjected to severe electric shocks. They are stripped naked. It is horrible. It is the worst I have seen in my 20-year career, visiting prisoners on behalf of the UN. Torture is widespread and systematic. 95% of Ukrainian prisoners of war have been tortured, and this constitutes a war crime,” she said.
She also noted that the treatment of Russian prisoners of war in Ukraine differs from what Ukrainian captives face in Russia.
“The Ukrainian authorities provide us with unrestricted access to camps and temporary prisons holding prisoners of war. Although there were some issues at the beginning of the invasion, over the last 1.5 years, we have observed conditions that comply with the humanitarian law of war,” Bell said.
Earlier, Ukrainian families of prisoners of war said Russia return the bodies of fallen Ukrainian defenders without internal organs.
Relatives of Ukrainian POWs: Russia returns bodies without internal organs during exchanges
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- UAE mediates new prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine
- Ukraine probes execution of POWs by Russian forces near Robotyne
- Russia illegally holds under arrest over 14,000 Ukrainian citizens – Ombudsman
