Ukrainian Prisoners Torture: UN Documents Systematic Abuse

Comprehensive reports presented during a United Nations Security Council session reveal that more than 95% of Ukrainian prisoners of war released from Russian captivity reported experiencing systematic torture and abuse.

According to data from the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, investigators have documented the executions of 129 prisoners shortly after their capture, along with the deaths of 48 additional captives resulting from torture, denial of medical treatment, and inhumane detention conditions.

Detention Facility Conditions

Ukrainian officials indicated that more than 300 detention facilities have been identified across Russian territory and in areas under Russian control.

While over 9,000 Ukrainians have been returned through prisoner exchange agreements, thousands of additional soldiers and civilians remain held in harsh conditions. More than half of those interviewed in UN reports testified that they experienced severe abuse during their imprisonment.

Ukrainian boy holding sign asking for help (Photo: Shutterstock / Nastyaofly)

Testimonies of Abuse

Juan Alberto Levia Garcia, a Ukrainian army soldier held captive for 1,183 days, described his detention conditions. "Yes. I experienced torture". Garcia said. "Everything you can think of that can be done that is harmful, degrading to a person, against their will. Everything that comes to mind, not just verbal abuse, physical abuse, daily beatings, electric shocks, exhausting exercises in freezing cold when it's below zero... severe acts. Everything that can be applied to a person to cause them to break mentally. Everything was applied to me and to most of my comrades".

Garcia added that two of his fellow prisoners were beaten to death in detention facilities in the Donetsk region. He described prisoners being held in "overcrowded units without adequate conditions", where "almost all the prisoners were sick with dysentery", and many suffered from starvation.

The philosophy of oppression extended to civilians as well, as described by Lenia Umerova, who was transferred between seven different detention facilities in what she called a "torture carousel".

Responses to Allegations

Russia rejected the allegations raised during the session.

Maria Zabolotskaya, Russia's deputy representative to the UN, called the findings a "disinformation campaign", and claimed that Russian prisoners held in Ukraine are subjected to physical and psychological abuse.

UN officials noted that while violations against Russian prisoners have also been documented, the scale is entirely different from that perpetrated by Russia.