Russians shoot three Ukrainian soldiers near Huliaipole, in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast — DeepState
According to the analytical project DeepState, on December 20, 2025, the Russian military shot three soldiers of the Defense Forces of Ukraine south of Huliaipole in the Zaporizhzhia region.
“Katsapy shot three soldiers of the Ukrainian Defense Forces south of Huliaipole. The event took place on December 20, 2025. Soldiers of one of the mechanized brigades were supposed to occupy positions that had previously been abandoned without authorization by another unit, but the enemy was already waiting for them there,” the statement reads.
Previously, a video appeared online showing Russians allegedly capturing a command and observation post of one of the Ukrainian units in the center of Huliaipole, Zaporizhzhia region. Ukrainska Pravda news outlet sources reported that this event occurred on December 18.
A source for hromadske confirmed that the Russians showed a genuine command post belonging to the 1st Battalion of the 106th Brigade. Previously, this was the 75th Battalion within the 102nd Brigade. According to the serviceman, more than ten soldiers were in the headquarters. When the Russians approached, the Ukrainian military engaged in a small arms firefight. He added that by retreating from its positions, the 1st Battalion of the 106th Brigade exposed the flank of the 2nd Battalion of the 102nd Brigade, allowing the enemy to enter from the direction of the village of Marfopil and the northeastern side of Huliaipole.
On December 6, the Donetsk Oblast Prosecutor’s Office stated that Russian occupying troops shot dead a Ukrainian serviceman on the Siversk front as he attempted to surrender.
Earlier, DeepState, a Ukrainian group of military analysts, stated that Russian troops had executed a Ukrainian prisoner of war in the settlement of Sviato-Pokrovske, in the Bakhmut District, Donetsk Oblast.
On November 27, Russian forces shot and killed five Ukrainian soldiers taken prisoner near the settlement of Zelenyi Hai in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
On 19 November 2025, Russians executed five Ukrainian POWs in the Pokrovsk District, Donetsk Oblast.
On July 24, the OSCE invoked the Moscow Mechanism after 41 participating states, in consultation with Ukraine, requested that the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights examine the treatment of Ukrainian prisoners of war by Russia. Ukraine established a mission of three experts on August 15 to investigate possible violations of OSCE commitments, international humanitarian law, and international human rights law.
The OSCE mission found that Russia systematically denies Ukrainian combatants prisoner of war status, subjects them to widespread torture and ill-treatment, including severe beatings, electric shocks, sexual violence, and mock executions, and conducts arbitrary killings and executions both on the battlefield and in detention.
Russian officials’ public statements declaring “no quarter will be given” encourage summary executions. Detention conditions fall below international standards, with overcrowding, inadequate food and medical care, and forced labor. POWs are denied fair trial guarantees through coerced confessions and unfair proceedings, while family communication and International Committee of the Red Cross access remain severely restricted. The mission concluded these violations constitute war crimes and, in some cases, arguably crimes against humanity.
At least 13,500 members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces have been detained by Russia since February 2022. Approximately 169 have died in captivity, nearly 6,800 have been released, and an estimated 6,300 remain in detention across multiple sites in Russia and temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories.
