Russian Court Sentences 12 Ukrainians to Prison for “Seizure of Power”
A Russian court has sentenced 12 Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) to prison on charges of “seizure of power” and participating in a “terrorist organization.” The POWs, who served with the Azov battalion, were captured during the Russian siege of Mariupol in 2022.
The trial was seen as a propaganda stunt by Ukraine, which said that international law prohibits trials with war captives. Ukraine is also planning to bring back those sentenced through prisoner exchanges.
Only 12 of the POWs were present at the trial. They were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 13 to 23 years:
* Oleksandr Mukhin: 22 years
* Yaroslav Zhdamarov: 22 years
* Oleh Zharkov: 13 years
* Anatolii Hrytsyk: 13 years
* Oleksii Smykov: 13 years
* Oleh Mizhhorodskyi: 17 years
* Oleksandr Irkha: 15 years
* Artem Hrebeskhov: 20 years
* Artur Hretskyi: 22 years
* Oleksandr Merochenets: 22 years
* Oleh Tyshkul: 22 years
* Mykyta Tymonin: 22 years
The Russian prosecutors had demanded sentences of 16 to 24 years for the POWs. All of them plan to appeal the sentence.
Some of the sentenced POWs complained about torture and poor conditions in detention during their final statements. Others refused to communicate or recognize the Russian court’s authority.
Ukraine has returned over 4,000 POWs from Russian captivity since the start of the war. The country is calling for an all-for-all exchange of prisoners with Russia as part of efforts to broker a ceasefire and peace deal.
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