'Shoot them on the spot' — Ukraine's military intel records over 150 cases of Russia executing POWs

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Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) has documented more than 150 cases of Ukrainian soldiers being summarily executed after surrendering to Russian forces, the agency said on May 24.

The agency noted that this figure includes those cases recorded by HUR, suggesting the actual total may be higher. The statement came as Kyiv and Moscow began their largest prisoner exchange of the full-scale war.

There has been a sharp rise in executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) by Russian forces since 2024.

Intelligence officials have cited multiple instances in which Russian troops received direct orders to kill prisoners of war. According to HUR, these acts are not isolated incidents but part of a deliberate and systematic policy of the Russian leadership.

This pattern of war crimes has also been confirmed by the U.N. Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine. In a report released on March 19, the commission found a growing number of cases in which Russian forces deliberately killed or maimed Ukrainian soldiers who had surrendered or attempted to surrender.

"Several (Russian deserters) told the commission that they had received orders not to take prisoners but kill them instead," the U.N. report read. One described a deputy brigade commander saying, "Prisoners are not needed, shoot them on the spot."

In February, the U.N. Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine raised alarm over a sharp increase in executions of Ukrainian POWs by Russian forces, documenting 79 POW executions across 24 separate incidents since late August 2024, some involving group killings.

The U.N. findings, based on witness testimony and verified media content, describe Ukrainian POWs, including unarmed or wounded soldiers, being shot on the spot, often in areas of active Russian military operations. The mission also noted public calls by Russian figures and military-linked social media accounts for such killings.