Former British soldier wins court case against Russia due to mistreatment in captivity

Former British soldier Shaun Pinner, who fought on Ukraine's side and was captured by the Russians in Mariupol in 2022, has won a court case against Russia.

Source: Radio Liberty; The Daily Mail; The Sun; website of the Solomianskyi District Court of Kyiv

Details: The Englishman filed a lawsuit with the Solomianskyi District Court of Kyiv in October 2023. The court has now ruled on financial compensation for torture in Russian captivity. The amount in question is not specified.

The Daily Mail notes that Moscow is likely to ignore this decision, but the case could set a precedent for more prisoners of war to file complaints against Russia. Pinner himself said in a commentary to the media outlet that he intends to continue his case in the British courts.

Quote from Pinner: "We've already begun that process and we won't give up. Russia needs to be held accountable for the way they treated me and this (the Ukrainian court ruling) is the first step. <...> When Russia comes back into the real world they are going to have to settle these legal cases... It's not about now, but the future, next year, 10 years, 20 years time"

Details: The media outlets report that another British citizen, Aiden Aslin, who was held captive in Russia with Pinner, intends to sue Russia in the near future.

Background:

Pinner and Aslin were released from Russian captivity in September 2022. They had been held there for 5 months. They said that the torture in detention could last for several hours: the prisoners were electrocuted, stabbed, and the death penalty was staged.

In early June 2022, the Moscow-controlled DPR (so-called Donetsk People's Republic) sentenced to death Pinner and Aslin, who fought in Donbas along with Ukrainian troops.

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