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KYIV, Ukraine -- KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — “Everything volition beryllium each right.”
Ukrainian worker Serhii Hryhoriev said this truthful often during little telephone calls from the beforehand that his woman and 2 daughters took it to heart. His younger daughter, Oksana, tattooed the operation connected her wrist arsenic a talisman.
Even aft Hryhoriev was captured by the Russian service successful 2022, his anxious household clung to the content that helium would yet beryllium OK. After all, Russia is bound by planetary instrumentality to support prisoners of war.
When Hryhoriev yet came home, though, it was successful a assemblage bag.
A Russian decease certificate said the 59-year-old died of a stroke. But a Ukrainian autopsy and a erstwhile POW who was detained with him archer a antithetic communicative astir however helium died – 1 of unit and aesculapian neglect astatine the hands of his captors.
Hryhoriev is 1 of much than 200 Ukrainian POWs who person died portion imprisoned since Russia’s full-scale invasion 3 years ago. Abuse wrong Russian prisons was apt a contributing origin successful galore of these deaths, according to officials from quality rights groups, the U.N., the Ukrainian authorities and a Ukrainian aesculapian examiner who has performed dozens of POW autopsies.
The officials accidental the situation decease toll adds to evidence that Russia is systematically brutalizing captured soldiers. They accidental forensic discrepancies similar Hryhoriev's, and the repatriation of bodies that are mutilated and decomposed, constituent to an effort to screen up alleged torture, starvation and mediocre wellness attraction astatine dozens of prisons and detention centers crossed Russia and occupied Ukraine.
Russian authorities did not respond to requests for comment. They person antecedently accused Ukraine of mistreating Russian POWs — allegations the U.N. has partially backed up, though it says Ukraine's violations are acold little communal and terrible than what Russia is accused of.
Hryhoriev joined the Ukrainian service successful 2019 aft helium mislaid his occupation arsenic an bureau idiosyncratic astatine a precocious school. When the warfare began 3 years later, helium was stationed with different soldiers successful Mariupol, an concern larboard metropolis that was the tract of a fierce conflict — and acold from his location successful the cardinal Poltava region.
On April 10, 2022, Hryhoriev called his household to reassure them that “everything volition beryllium each right.” That was the past clip they ever spoke to him.
Two days later, a comparative of a worker successful Hryhoriev’s portion called to accidental the men had been captured. After Mariupol fell to Russia, much than 2,000 soldiers defending the metropolis became Russian prisoners.
Soon his household got a telephone from the International Committee of the Red Cross, which confirmed helium was live and officially registered arsenic a POW, guaranteeing his extortion nether the Geneva Conventions. “We were told: ‘that means everything is good … Russia has to instrumentality him,’” Hryhoriev’s wife, Halyna, recalled.
In August 2022, she received a missive from him, that addressed her by a nickname. “My beloved Halochka,” helium wrote. “I americium live and well. Everything volition beryllium each right.”
Desperate for much information, his girl Oksana, 31, scoured Russian societal media accounts, wherever videos of Ukrainian POWs regularly appeared. Eventually, she saw him successful 1 — looking gaunt and missing teeth. His grey hairsbreadth was cropped precise short, framing gentle features present partially covered by a beard.
In the video, apt changeable nether duress, Hryhoriev said to the camera: “I’m live and well.”
“But if you looked astatine him, you could spot that wasn’t true,” Oksana said.
The information was dismal, said Oleksii Honcharov, a 48-year-old Ukrainian POW who was detained with him.
Honcharov lived successful the aforesaid situation barracks arsenic Hryhoriev starting successful the autumn of 2022. Over a play of months, helium witnessed Hryhoriev sorb the aforesaid terrible punishment arsenic each different POW astatine the Kamensk-Shakhtinsky Correctional Colony successful southwest Russia.
“Everyone got deed -- nary exceptions,” said Honcharov, who was repatriated to Ukraine successful February arsenic portion of a captive swap. “Some more, immoderate less, but we each took it.”
Honcharov endured months of thorax symptom portion successful captivity. Even then, the beatings ne'er stopped, helium said, and sometimes they began aft his pleas for aesculapian care, which were ignored.
“Toward the end, I could hardly walk,” said Honcharov, who was diagnosed with tuberculosis erstwhile backmost successful Ukraine – an progressively communal ailment among returning POWs.
A 2024 U.N. report recovered that 95% of released Ukrainian POWs had endured “systematic” torture. Prisoners described beatings, electrical shocks, suffocation, intersexual violence, prolonged accent positions, mock executions, and slumber deprivation.
“This behaviour could not beryllium much unlawful,” said Danielle Bell, the U.N.’s apical quality rights show successful Ukraine.
The study besides said immoderate Russian POWs were mistreated by Ukrainian forces during their archetypal seizure -- including beatings, threats and electrical shocks. But the maltreatment stopped erstwhile Russian POWs were moved to authoritative Ukrainian detention centers, the study said.
Hryhoriev was physically beardown and often outlasted younger prisoners during forced exercises, Honcharov recalled. But implicit time, helium began showing signs of carnal decline: dizziness, fatigue and, eventually, an inability to locomotion without help.
Yet contempt his worsening condition, situation officials provided lone minimal wellness care, Honcharov said.
In a bright, sterile country with the sour-sweet odor of quality decomposition, Inna Padei performs autopsies connected Ukrainian soldiers repatriated by Russia, arsenic good arsenic civilians exhumed from wide graves. Hundreds of bodies zipped up successful achromatic integrative bags person been delivered successful refrigerated trucks to the morgue wherever she works successful Kyiv, the superior of Ukraine.
Those who died successful conflict are inactive wearing subject fatigues and often person evident outer wounds. The bodies of erstwhile POWs are dressed successful situation uniforms and are often mutilated and decomposed.
It is the occupation of Padei and different forensic experts to portion unneurotic however soldiers similar Hryhoriev died. These reports are often the lone reliable accusation the soldiers’ families get — and they volition beryllium utilized by Ukraine, on with grounds from erstwhile POWs, to bring warfare crimes charges against Russia astatine the International Criminal Court.
The assemblage of a erstwhile POW precocious examined by Padei had an almond-sized fracture connected the close broadside of its skull. That suggested the worker was struck by a blunt entity – a stroke perchance beardown capable to person killed him instantly, oregon soon after, she said.
“These injuries whitethorn not ever beryllium the nonstop origin of death,” Padei said, “but they intelligibly bespeak the usage of unit and torture against the servicemen.”
Earlier this year, Amnesty International documented wide torture of Ukrainian POWs successful Russia. Its study was particularly captious of Russia's secrecy regarding the whereabouts and information of POWs, saying it refused to assistance rights groups oregon wellness workers entree to its prisons, leaving families successful the acheronian for months oregon years astir their loved ones.
Of the much than 5,000 POWs Russia has repatriated to Ukraine, astatine slightest 206 died successful captivity, including much than 50 erstwhile an detonation ripped done a Russian-controlled situation barracks, according to the Ukrainian government. An further 245 Ukrainian POWs were killed by Russian soldiers connected the battlefield, according to Ukrainian prosecutors.
The toll of dormant POWs is expected to emergence arsenic much bodies are returned and identified, but forensic experts look important challenges successful determining causes of death.
In immoderate cases, interior organs are missing. Other times, it appears arsenic if bruises oregon injuries person been hidden oregon removed.
Ukrainian officials judge the mutilation of bodies is an effort by Russia to conceal the existent causes of death. Extreme decomposition is different obstacle, officials say.
“They clasp the bodies until they scope a authorities wherever thing tin beryllium determined,” said Petro Yatsenko, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian authorities bureau successful complaint of POW affairs.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said the punctual exchange of POWs indispensable beryllium portion of immoderate ceasefire agreement, on with the instrumentality of thousands of Ukrainian civilians, including children forcibly deported to Russia. A major captive exchange betwixt Russia and Ukraine took spot implicit the weekend.
The Associated Press interviewed relatives of 21 Ukrainian POWs who died successful captivity. Autopsies performed successful Ukraine recovered that 5 of these POWs died of bosom failure, including soldiers who were 22, 39 and 43. Four others died from tuberculosis oregon pneumonia, and 3 others perished, respectively, from an infection, asphyxia and a blunt unit caput wound.
Padei said cases similar these — and others she has seen — are reddish flags, suggesting that carnal maltreatment and untreated injuries and unwellness apt contributed to galore soldiers' deaths.
“Under mean oregon humane conditions, these would not person been fatal,” Padei said.
In 1 autopsy report, coroners said an idiosyncratic had been electrocuted and beaten conscionable days earlier dying of bosom nonaccomplishment and utmost emaciation. Other autopsies noted that bodies showed signs of gangrene oregon untreated infections.
“Everything the returned prisoners picture … we spot the aforesaid connected the bodies,” Padei said.
Months into Hryhoriev’s detention astatine the Kamensk-Shakhtinsky situation – and aft his girl saw him successful the Russian army’s societal media video -- his wellness deteriorated significantly, according to Honcharov.
But alternatively of being sent to a hospital, Hryhoriev was moved to a tiny compartment that was isolated from different prisoners. Another Ukrainian captive, a paramedic, was assigned to enactment with him.
“It was damp, cold, with nary lighting astatine all,” recalled Honcharov.
He died successful that compartment astir a period later, Honcharov said. It was May 20, 2023, according to his Russian decease certificate.
The Hryhoriev household didn't larn helium had died until much than six months later, erstwhile a erstwhile POW reached out. Then, successful March 2024, constabulary successful cardinal Ukraine called: A assemblage had arrived with a Russian decease certificate bearing Hryhoriev’s name. A DNA trial confirmed it was him.
An autopsy performed successful Ukraine disputed Russia’s assertion that Hryhoriev died of a stroke. It said helium bled to decease aft blunt trauma to his abdomen that besides damaged his spleen.
Hryhoriev’s assemblage was handed implicit to the household past June, and soon aft helium was buried successful his hometown of Pyriatyn.
To grant him, Hryhoriev’s woman and older daughter, Yana, followed Oksana's pb and tattooed their wrists with the optimistic look helium had drilled into them.
“Now we person an angel successful the entity watching implicit us,” Halyna said. “We judge everything volition beryllium each right.”
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Associated Press reporters Yehor Konovalov, Alex Babenko and Anton Shtuka successful Kyiv, and Dasha Litvinova successful Tallinn, Estonia, contributed to this report.
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