Russian pro-war milbloggers have reacted to yet more reports of Ukrainian POWs being executed by Moscow’s forces by seeking to justify the killings, while some have even called for more.
In the latest case of what appears to be an increasingly common occurrence, Russian troops reportedly shot dead nine Ukrainian drone operators who surrendered near the village of Zeleny Shlyakh in Russia’s Kursk Oblast on Oct. 10.
In a counterattack to Russia’s full-scale invasion launched two and a half years ago, Ukraine’s army more than two months ago conducted an incursion into Russia’s Kursk Oblast, and has controlled a patch of the territory ever since.
Ukraine's Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin announced on Oct. 13 that his office had opened an investigation into the killings, describing them as “a gross violation of the Geneva Conventions and an international crime.”
Several prominent milbloggers did not deny the reports but instead argued that the killing of POWs was justified. Several even reveled in the alleged murders.
Many Russian milbloggers have a significant following in Russian society, with some having hundreds of thousands of subscribers on Telegram, and others having more than a million.
An independent political analyst currently based in Russia told the Kyiv Independent that milbloggers represent a militant and radical minority rather than the majority of the public, but stressed they would be unlikely to function without the blessing of the Kremlin.
He spoke on condition of anonymity due to the fear of reprisals.
"Their Telegram channels have many subscribers, which means that part of society trusts them as sources of information," he said.
"Overall, society is definitely not bloodthirsty and, of course, does not support any executions; only aggressive ultranationalists might support such things."
Russian public support for the war in Ukraine has been strong throughout the full-scale invasion, though some recent polls suggest this is declining.
Kremlin authorities have not publicly commented on the report and did not respond to requests for comment.
The milbloggers who supported the alleged killing have mostly backed the Kremlin's policy but sometimes criticized the conduct of the war, arguing that Russia's approach is not hardline enough.
One known as Starshe Eddy (Older than the Edda) with 628,000 followers said the executions were "good but not enough."
"During World War II, there were entire units of the German army that were not taken prisoner," he wrote.
"In our case, the scum who entered Kursk Oblast and were shooting peaceful civilians got what they deserved."
There is no evidence to support this claim.
Another known as Rosgvardeyets (Russian Guard member) with 29,000 followers, wrote that "they should have been executed" even if they had surrendered as prisoners of war without fighting.
"Drone operators should not be allowed to live," he wrote. "First extract all the information from them, and then dispose of them... The nature of war has changed.
“In the past, snipers and pilots weren't taken prisoner, and now drone operators have been added to the list."
Zapiski veterana (A veteran’s notes) with 358,000 followers accused Ukrainian drone operators of "hunting civilians during the evacuation from Sudzha (in Kursk Oblast) and the Sudzha district."
"These bastards got a fairly humane death," the blogger wrote.
There is no evidence to suggest Ukrainian drone operators hunt civilians in Kursk Oblast or anywhere else on the battlefield. There is, however, extensive and well–documented targeting of civilians by Russian drone operators, particularly in Kherson Oblast.
Zarina Zabrisky
The blogger known as Dva Maiora (Two Majors) with 1.18 million followers justified the killings by saying that the prisoners surrendered only after initially fighting back.
"Even the enemy channels write that they didn’t try to surrender immediately," Dva Maiora said. "They fought... These bastards thought that 20 kilometers from the front line, they could continue killing civilians with impunity."
There is no evidence to support Dva Maiora’s claims of the drone operators killing civilians.
Rybar, one of the best-known milboggers with a following of 1.3 million, attempted to downplay the alleged crime.
"Such executions on the front line from both sides of the conflict are far from uncommon," he said. "One of the most common scenarios is an attempt to escape and seize a weapon, leading to the liquidation of the captives as part of armed combat."
Rybar also said that "captives often become a burden: there is not always an opportunity to assign even a guard to them when you are conducting effective assault operations."
"It’s easy to fight from high offices and demand humanity, as long as you’re not on the front lines and facing a ‘them or us’ situation," he said.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiga posted on X on Oct 13, calling for the international community to take immediate action by issuing warrants for Russian soldiers found to have executed POWs, increasing sanctions, and demanding access to detention sites.
Russia's mistreatment of Ukrainian prisoners of war is absolute barbarism, grave violation of international humanitarian law, laws and customs of war. Executions are becoming more frequent, 95% of POWs are subjected to torture according to the UN, denied basic needs and access.
— Andrii Sybiha 🇺🇦 (@andrii_sybiha) October 13, 2024
Ukraine's Obudsman Dmytro Lubinets said that he had submitted information about the alleged killing to the U.N. and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Summary executions by Russians of Ukrainian prisoners of war have sharply risen in the past year.
Kyiv knows of 93 Ukrainian POWs who were summarily executed by Russian soldiers on the battlefield throughout the full-scale war, a senior representative of the Prosecutor General's Office said on national television on Oct. 4.
Chris York
