POWs

Ukrainian soldier shares shocking weight loss after nearly three years in Russian captivity

Ukrainian defender Ivan Petrovskyi returned from Russian captivity, where he spent 1037 days, on March 19 as part of one of the largest prisoner exchanges to date, he wrote on Instagram and showed his photo on March 23.

24 March 2025, 02:38 PM

Russian prisoners confirm decent treatment in Ukrainian captivity before exchange

Russian prisoners of war, who returned to Russia on March 19 following a prisoner exchange, confirmed they had no complaints about their treatment in Ukrainian captivity. Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets shared a video of their statements on March 22.

22 March 2025, 09:01 PM

Broad prisoner exchanges are first step to ending war — Zelenskyy

As Ukraine talks with the United States and other partners about ending the Russo-Ukrainian war, one of the first steps must be a full prisoner exchange, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on March 21.

21 March 2025, 10:23 PM

Ukraine, Russia to exchange 175 POWs each on March 19, Zelenskyy says

Kyiv and Moscow are preparing for a 175-for-175 prisoner swap on March 19, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at a press conference on March 18.

18 March 2025, 11:48 PM

The brutal truth behind Russia’s execution of Ukrainian POWs: motives, patterns, and the road to justice

A group of Ukrainian soldiers, unarmed and defenseless, kneel in the dirt. Their hands are bound. A Russian soldier gives the order. Gunfire erupts. The bodies collapse, lifeless. The video surfaced online on March 13, 2025, offering a horrifying glimpse into the systematic execution of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) by Russian forces. Ukraine’s Human Rights Ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, confirmed its authenticity, calling it yet another war crime added to an already staggering list.

15 March 2025, 01:48 PM

Relatives of POWs rally outside US embassy in Kyiv

A No 'Deals' Without Freedom of UA POWs protest took place near the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv with relatives and friends of civilians and military personnel held by Russia or missing on March 6.

6 March 2025, 04:39 PM

Amnesty International documents 109 executions of Ukrainian POWs in 2024

Human rights watchdog Amnesty International has documented 109 executions of Ukrainian prisoners-of-war in 2024, Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform reported on March 4.

4 March 2025, 11:41 PM

Russian marine confesses to executing Ukrainian POW — video

Public broadcaster Suspilne obtained a video from Ukraine’s SBU security service showing a Russian soldier confessing to the execution of a Ukrainian prisoner of war. The video was released on Feb. 27.

27 February 2025, 08:56 PM

Ukraine returns bodies of over 750 fallen soldiers

Ukraine has successfully repatriated the bodies of 757 fallen soldiers, according to a statement from the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War on Feb. 14.

14 February 2025, 04:24 PM

Russia preparing provocation against Coordination HQ for POWs, HUR warns

Russia is planning a provocation against Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War by spreading forged documents, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) reported on Feb. 8.

8 February 2025, 11:22 AM

Russian troops surrender to Ukraine’s National Guard near Pokrovsk

Ukrainian defenders captured a group of Russian occupation forces on the Pokrovsk front, the Spartan 3rd Operational Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine reported on Feb. 7.

7 February 2025, 05:35 PM

Azov soldiers still largely excluded from POW exchanges

During the latest prisoner exchange on Feb. 5, which saw the return of 150 Ukrainians, no soldiers of the National Guard's 12th Special Purpose Brigade ‘Azov’ were released, according to brigade commander Denys Prokopenko.

5 February 2025, 11:49 PM

Olenivka prison camp massacre deliberately caused by Russian action, reveal prosecutors

The leadership of the Olenivka prison colony, working with Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service, caused additional deaths of injured Ukrainian servicemembers, Dmytro Martsyn, prosecutor of the 18th Department of Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office, said on Jan. 28.

28 January 2025, 04:22 PM

Uncertainty surrounds fate of Ukrainian POWs in Il-76 crash – MIHR investigation

The presence of Ukrainian prisoners of war on the Il-76 aircraft that crashed in Russia's Belgorod Oblast on Jan. 24, 2024, remains unconfirmed, according to an investigation by the Media Initiative for Human Rights (MIHR) released on Jan. 24, 2025.

24 January 2025, 06:57 PM

Russian POWs kept in five locations across Ukraine

Russian prisoners-of-war are held in five specially designated facilities located far away from the frontline, Bohdan Okhrimenko, spokesperson for Ukraine’s Coordination HQ for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, said on Jan. 22.

23 January 2025, 02:13 AM

Captured North Korean soldier in Ukraine requests Korean romance movies – watch the moment!

A North Korean soldier fighting alongside Russian forces asked to watch romance movies after being captured by Ukrainian forces, the command of Ukraine’s Air Assault Forces reported on Jan. 21.

22 January 2025, 02:07 PM

POW describes dissent and desertion among Russian troops in Kursk Oblast

Russian soldiers in Kursk Oblast are forced to build dugouts at their own expense, a captured Russian marine, Pavel Smirnov, says in a video published on Jan. 20 by the pro-Ukrainian Telegram channel Crimean Wind.

20 January 2025, 02:03 PM

Ukraine’s Special Forces strike back, neutralize Russian squad behind POW executions

Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces (SOF) reported on Jan. 17 that they neutralized part of a Russian group responsible for executing captured members of Ukraine’s Territorial Defense Forces (TDF) and forced the remaining perpetrators to surrender, sharing footage of the captured soldiers.

17 January 2025, 05:48 PM

Ukraine unveils new process for repatriating seriously ill and wounded from Russian captivity

Ukraine has launched a new process to secure the release of seriously ill Ukrainians from Russian captivity, returning 24 prisoners of war and one civilian, according to Andrii Yusov, a Defense Ministry intelligence official on Jan. 15.

16 January 2025, 11:10 AM

Australia vows swift action over Russian captivity of POW Oscar Jenkins

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese vowed to take “the most resolute measures” if Russia harms Australian soldier Oscar Jenkins, who was captured and interrogated by Russian forces last month, CNN reported on Jan. 15.

15 January 2025, 02:21 PM

POWs

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