Amid chaotic Ukrainian withdrawal, Russian forces reportedly execute 5 POWs in Zaporizhzhia Oblast
At least five Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) were executed by Russian soldiers amid a chaotic withdrawal near Huliaipole, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, it was reported on Nov. 27.
According to analytical organisation DeepState, Ukrainian soldiers were taken captive and shot dead on Nov. 26 near Zelenyi Hai village, in the Huliaipole sector.
"The enemy captured the soldiers in the forest, lined them up, and shot them after interrogation," DeepState said on Telegram.
Speaking to Interfax-Ukraine on Nov. 27, Spokesperson of the Southern Defense Forces Vladyslav Voloshyn acknowledged that Ukrainian forces had withdrawn from positions in the area, but one unit "withdrew from the occupied positions in an uncoordinated manner."
"Thus, it exposed one of the flanks of our operational structure in this area and the personnel of the adjacent unit found themselves without cover," he said.
"The enemy, taking advantage of this situation and difficult weather conditions, entered the flank of the Defense Forces."
Voloshyn didn't confirm the execution of Ukrainian POWs and said details of what occurred were "currently being clarified and verified," but he said several Ukrainian soldiers were missing.
In an apparent reference to the reports of executed POWs, he added "Ukraine will contact the relevant human rights and judicial bodies to punish the perpetrators" if evidence of a war crime was discovered.
Later on Nov. 27, Ukraine Prosecutor General's Office said five Ukrainian POWs were "shot in cold blood" by Russian forces.
Huliaipole, despite being one of the most stable parts of the front line for most of the full-scale war, is now threatened by Russia's brisk push into eastern Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
Its defense helps slow Russia’s push west and complicates any attempt to link its advances in Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia.
But the scale of the executions in recent days may be larger. DeepState in an assessment of the events surrounding the withdrawal, reported another four Ukrainian POWs were executed in another incident.
"To understand the scale of the chaos, the day before yesterday, in the rear, in one of the forest strips, a Russian sabotage group captured and shot four (Ukrainian drone) pilots," it said.
The events happened amid Russian infiltration groups reportedly reaching the outskirts of Huliaipole with the DeepState saying the situation had "stabilized" on Nov. 27.
Executing POWs is a war crime and violates the Geneva Conventions, which prohibit torture, violence, and execution without a fair trial.
Russian forces regularly execute Ukrainian soldiers as it continues to wage its war. Kyiv is already investigating evidence that Russian forces executed at least 322 Ukrainian POWs, the Prosecutor General's Office reported on Oct. 6.
Russian troops reportedly shot dead two captured Ukrainian troops on the outskirts of Zatyshshia, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, DeepState reported on Nov. 15.
The killers were eliminated by an FPV drone about 20 minutes later, DeepState reported at the same time.
On Nov. 22 DeepState posted video footage which allegedly shows the moment Russian troops shot five Ukrainian soldiers as they were lying on the ground.
