Execution of 16 POWs: Russians kill soldiers from two Ukrainian units

Russian invasion forces extrajudicially executed near Pokrovsk, Donetsk region, 16 soldiers who were likely part of the two Ukrainian Army units, prosecutors established.

That’s according to Yurii Belousov, chief of the War Department at the Prosecutor General's Office, Ukrinform reports.

"As of now, we are aware that fighters from two units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine may have been killed there. We know the numbers of these units. We have tentatively identified these fighters. But we are further verifying this information out of respect for their families, so as not to make an error as to their names," he said on the air of the national telethon.

According to Belousov, Ukrainian law enforcers have data on where exactly the Ukrainian POWs were shot and which Russian unit could be involved in the crime.

Enquiries have been sent to military and intelligence units, as well as to international partners, in order to collect as much information as possible about the said atrocity.

It should be recalled that on October 1, 2024, reports emerged of the alleged execution of 16 Ukrainian servicemen by Russian invasion troops.

The drone footage circulating online shows how the Russians lined up captured soldiers outside a forest strip before opening fire and finishing them at close range using automatic rifles.

The SBU security service initiated a criminal proceeding into the violation of the laws and customs of war, combined with premeditated murder.