Special forces of Ukraine's Defence Intelligence have documented over 150 executions of captured Ukrainian defenders.
All data on war crimes collected by the special units of Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence are handed over to Ukrainian law enforcement for further investigation.
In many cases, there is evidence of direct orders to kill prisoners of war. These crimes are part of a deliberate policy by the leadership of Russia.
This trend is also confirmed by the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine. In its report dated March 19, 2025, the commission noted an increase in instances where Russian troops intentionally killed or maimed Ukrainian soldiers who had surrendered or were attempting to surrender.
"Several Russian deserters confirmed they had received orders not to take prisoners but to kill them. One of them quoted a deputy brigade commander as saying: 'We don’t need prisoners — shoot them on the spot'," the report states.
The UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial executions, Dr. Morris Tidball-Binz, clearly identified those responsible in a CNN interview:
“These acts would not occur with such frequency and scale without orders — or, at the very least, consent — from the highest military command, which in Russia means the office of the president,”
he said.
