At least 184 Ukrainians died in Russian captivity since February 2022 – Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters

Between 24 February 2022 and the end of October 2024, Ukraine has retrieved the bodies of 184 Ukrainians who died in Russian captivity, including 169 military and 15 civilians.

Source: Media Initiative for Human Rights (MIHR), citing the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War

Details: MIHR notes that the actual number of deceased prisoners is likely significantly higher. The organisation has collected testimonies from 122 Ukrainian soldiers who were held captive in Russia. These accounts describe systematic torture, isolation from the outside world and the lack of adequate medical care.

Quote: "There are still many Ukrainian defenders in Russian captivity who have been there since the first months of the great war, i.e., more than 30 months. Russia does not allow monitoring mission representatives, including the International Committee of the Red Cross, to visit them. It does not inform Ukraine about the deterioration of their health or death. All of these are gross violations of the Geneva Conventions."

Details: Documented evidence also highlights numerous cases of prisoner deaths caused by inhumane conditions and torture in detention facilities.

Among the 169 military personnel who died in captivity and whose bodies were returned to Ukraine, 55 died from explosions at the Olenivka penal colony.

Background:

• The UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine uncovered new evidence of Russia's torture of Ukrainian civilians and prisoners of war in the occupied territories. The findings indicate that Russian forces are operating in a coordinated manner across all torture chambers and regularly commit acts of sexual violence.
• A report by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights indicates that Russian forces systematically torture and mistreat Ukrainian POWs.
• Torture methods include beatings, electric shocks, sexual violence, suffocation, forced prolonged tension, forced excessive physical exertion, sleep deprivation, mock executions and threats.
• Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office reported that the number of executions of Ukrainian POWs by Russian forces has increased over the past year, suggesting these are not isolated incidents but part of a deliberate policy by Russia.

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