From February 24, 2022 to late October 2024, a total of 184 bodies of Ukrainians who died in captivity were retrieved from Russia, including 169 military service members and 15 civilians.
The Media Initiative for Human Rights reported this citing the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, Ukrinform saw.
It is noted that the real number of prisoners who died in Russia is likely much higher. The organization collected testimonies from 122 Ukrainian soldiers released from Russian captivity. They refer to systematic torture, isolation, and lack of proper medical treatment.
“Many defenders remaining in Russian captivity have been there since the first months of the big war, that is, for more than 30 months. Russia does not allow monitoring missions, in particular the International Committee of the Red Cross, to visit them, and neither does it inform Ukraine about their deteriorating health or deaths. All of this grossly violates the Geneva Conventions,” the report says.
There are numerous reports of prisoners dying over mistreatment and torture in penitentiary facilities.
Among the 169 servicemen who died in captivity and whose bodies were repatriated to Ukraine, there are 55 who were killed by explosions at the Olenivka penal colony.
As Ukrinform reported, Ukraine appealed to the ICRC to verify reports of the 18 captured Ukrainian soldiers seen in the video with Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov.
Source: At least 184 Ukrainians die in Russian captivity since Feb 2022 - Coordination HQ
