Ukraine opens war crimes investigation after video shows Russians shooting surrendering Ukrainians
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The Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine announced on Dec. 3 the launch of an investigation following the release of a video showing Russian troops shooting two Ukrainian soldiers who had surrendered.
According to preliminary reports from the Prosecutor General's Office, the incident occurred near one of the observation posts near the village of Stepove, Pokrovsk district, Donetsk Oblast.
"The video shows a group of people in Russian uniforms shooting at close range two unarmed servicemen in Ukrainian Armed Forces uniforms who were surrendering," the statement reads.
“Investigators and prosecutors have now launched an investigation into this episode.”
The investigation is being conducted under the article on violation of the laws and customs of war, combined with premeditated murder (Part 2 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).
The Prosecutor General's Office emphasizes that the killing of prisoners of war is a gross violation of the Geneva Conventions and is classified as a serious international crime.
Later, the Strategic Communications Department of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed that the Russians had shot two Ukrainian prisoners of war.
Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said that Ukraine would appeal to international organizations over the incident.
This is not the first recorded case of Russian war crimes against Ukrainian prisoners of war, including executions.
In the spring, a video surfaced in which Russian soldiers shot an unarmed Ukrainian soldier, Oleksandr Matsievskyi, at point-blank range after he said "Glory to Ukraine." The event took place in late December 2022.
The largest such crime on the part of the Russian Federation was the deliberate murder of Ukrainian prisoners, including Azovstal defenders, on the premises of the colony in the occupied Olenivka, Donetsk Oblast, in July 2022. The Russians then set off an explosion in the room where the prisoners were being held. About 50 Ukrainian defenders were killed. The Russian occupation administration did not allow an international Red Cross or UN mission to visit the site of the tragedy.
There have also been many cases of torture by starvation, abuse, and psychological pressure against Ukrainian soldiers in Russian captivity both after Feb. 24, 2022, and since 2014, when Russia started the war in Donbas and annexed Crimea.
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