Ukraine is investigating the executions of more than 300 prisoners of war by Russian forces, says Shvets
The extrajudicial executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war by Russian occupiers are systematic and widespread in nature and are effectively sanctioned by Russia’s political leadership.
This was stated by Andriy Shvets, head of the Main Investigation Department of the SBU.
According to him, from February 2022 to April 2026, 116 criminal cases are being investigated regarding the executions of 306 Ukrainian prisoners of war directly on the battlefield. “From February 2022 to April 2026, 116 criminal cases are being investigated regarding the executions of 306 Ukrainian prisoners of war on the battlefield,” he noted.
According to the investigation, the most widespread and brutal cases of extrajudicial executions have been recorded in the Kursk and Donetsk sectors. It is there that particularly brutal methods of killing have also been documented.
“The most widespread and brutal cases of extrajudicial executions of our servicemen are being recorded in the Kursk and Donetsk sectors. The most brutal methods of execution (mass shootings, beheadings, dismemberment) are also noted there,” Shvets emphasized.
He stressed that such actions by the Russian military are not isolated incidents but bear the hallmarks of a deliberate policy.
“Indeed, following the launch of the ‘Kursk’ operation in 2024, the President of the Russian Federation stated in a speech that all Ukrainian servicemen participating in this operation are terrorists and are subject to physical elimination. Such actions by the aggressor’s military personnel were subsequently rewarded by the Russian military leadership for their actual commission of war crimes,” explained the head of the SBU’s Main Investigation Department.
As of April 15, 2026, according to the investigation, nine servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces have been notified of suspicion. Indictments against seven individuals have already been sent to court, five of whom have received sentences.
As a reminder, in November 2025, during fighting near the village of Hnativka in the Pokrovsk district of Donetsk region, Russian troops killed a captured soldier of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
A photo of the Ukrainian serviceman, showing his severed head, appeared in Russian media. According to preliminary data, the identity of this soldier has been established, and the relevant information has already been forwarded to law enforcement agencies.
Earlier, the National Police of Ukraine, under the procedural guidance of the prosecutor’s office, identified five Russian soldiers involved in the shootings of civilians during the occupation of Bucha in 2022.
