torture

“Broken ribs have already healed, so there’s no point”: what civilians face after captivity and torture to get money and help
Articles - 28 September 2024

“Broken ribs have already healed, so there’s no point”: what civilians face after captivity and torture to get money and help

ZMINA talked about this with several former prisoners who were abducted during the occupation of Kherson, as well as Olena Belyachkova, coordinator of the groups of families of POWs and missing persons at Media Initiative for Human Rights.

Human rights defender Maksym Butkevych celebrates his third birthday in Russian captivity
Articles - 25 July 2024

Human rights defender Maksym Butkevych celebrates his third birthday in Russian captivity

ZMINA published the full text of his speech during the cassation hearing of his case by the Russian court, which was recorded by one of the visitors

From Kupiansk to Melitopol: the Russian system of torture in illegal detention centers
Articles - 23 July 2024

From Kupiansk to Melitopol: the Russian system of torture in illegal detention centers

ZMINA analysts reviewed the testimonies of victims who were illegally detained by the Russians in various places in the occupied territories between April 2022 and March 2023. Here are the main points from the analytical report

“We were kept in a pit near a petrol station”: a teenager from Kherson region told how he was taken to a torture chamber
News - 06 June 2024

“We were kept in a pit near a petrol station”: a teenager from Kherson region told how he was taken to a torture chamber

The guy was taken to a cell where about 15 people were already there. It looked like some kind of shower room: everything was tiled and there was a drain in the corner. Vitalii was the youngest there. 

How Ukraine passes judgment on violations of the laws and customs of war?
Articles - 24 April 2024

How Ukraine passes judgment on violations of the laws and customs of war?

ZMINA analyzed how Ukraine tries war criminals and what challenges it faces

Memories of Halyna Haiova, a torture survivor of the infamous Izolyatsia prison
News - 05 February 2024

Memories of Halyna Haiova, a torture survivor of the infamous Izolyatsia prison

Halyna Haiova, a senior nurse from the city of Dokuchaievsk, Donetsk region, was arrested by representatives of the so-called “Donetsk People’s Republic” (“DPR”) at her workplace on October 14, 2016. She was accused of having pro-Ukrainian views and helping the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The woman was held in captivity for nearly sixteen months, most of […]

Forced filming in propaganda: How Russians use civilian hostages to strengthen their power
Columns - 29 January 2024

Forced filming in propaganda: How Russians use civilian hostages to strengthen their power

For the most part, relatives who contacted the ZMINA Human Rights Center complained that the occupiers did not inform them about the circumstances or the detention of their loved ones

Mariupol resident, Mariana Checheliuk’s health deteriorated significantly due to captivity
News - 17 January 2024

Mariupol resident, Mariana Checheliuk’s health deteriorated significantly due to captivity

Mariana Checheliuk, a 24-year-old police officer from Mariupol, has suffered a significant deterioration in her health and immune system due to her extended stay in captivity. In August 2023, she was transferred from a prison in Taganrog to Mariupol, where she is still being held. Mariana’s mother, Natalia Checheliuk, told ZMINA about this. According to […]

Torture in the occupied territories: global consequences of terror
Columns - 22 December 2023

Torture in the occupied territories: global consequences of terror

ZMINA Human Rights Center has been documenting war crimes committed by representatives of the Russian Federation since the beginning of the large-scale invasion of Ukraine. In particular, it interviews victims of arbitrary detention, torture, and ill-treatment. Unfortunately, the practice of committing these crimes remains widespread and systemic. On December 7, Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andriy […]

Three stories of women taken by Russians as civilian hostages from Kherson
Articles - 05 November 2023

Three stories of women taken by Russians as civilian hostages from Kherson

Olha and Svitlana told ZMINA about how Russian occupying forces took prisoners, hastily prepared new cells for them, and held civilian hostages on the occupied left bank of the Kherson region

A typical day in a Russian prison (a diary of a civilian hostage)
Articles - 08 September 2023

A typical day in a Russian prison (a diary of a civilian hostage)

ZMINA has obtained a diary written by one of the Kremlin’s prisoners, Dmytro (name changed for security reasons), which he secretly kept throughout his imprisonment. We also spoke with Yevgen Yamkovyi and Viacheslav Zavalnyi, who learned firsthand what the modern Russian penitentiary system is like

A story of an elderly man from Balakliya on a 12-day hunger strike in Russian captivity
Articles - 18 August 2023

A story of an elderly man from Balakliya on a 12-day hunger strike in Russian captivity

Russian occupying forces took 73-year-old Viktor Illinsky from his home in Balakliya, Kharkiv region, in early August 2022. They wrapped a jacket around his head, put him in a military jeep, and drove him to the local police station. He was held with other civilian hostages, including another man in his 70s, in a cramped […]

Three stories about the abuse and inhumane conditions for Ukrainian women prisoners
Articles - 04 August 2023

Three stories about the abuse and inhumane conditions for Ukrainian women prisoners

During the war, Russian occupying forces abducted and held in prisons not only Ukrainian men but also women, regardless of age and status. Women are also subjected to torture, intimidation, and horrific conditions. They are accused of terrorism, adjusting fire, and collaborating with the Ukrainian armed forces. According to the Ministry of Reintegration of Temporarily […]

A resident of Nova Kakhovka, abducted three times, was found in one of the Simferopol detention centers
News - 26 July 2023

A resident of Nova Kakhovka, abducted three times, was found in one of the Simferopol detention centers

Russian occupying forces tortured the man and tried to find out whether Leonid Adolfovych Kondratsky was the great-grandson of Adolf Hitler

‘Women are not beaten here in Ukraine, but our hands are free’: How Russians held women in seized TDC in Kherson
Articles - 19 July 2023

‘Women are not beaten here in Ukraine, but our hands are free’: How Russians held women in seized TDC in Kherson

At different times, at least 30 local women were held at a temporary detention center (TDC) in Kherson, including a policewoman, a housewife, a cadet of a military educational institution, and a head teacher of a gymnasium. This is described in the analytical report "‘Women's cells’ of Kherson torture chamber" which was prepared by Human Rights Centre ZMINA specialists based on testimonies of victims.

Gafarov-Shyring list: how Russia is killing political prisoners in Crimea
Articles - 18 July 2023

Gafarov-Shyring list: how Russia is killing political prisoners in Crimea

Tetyana Pechonchyk emphasized the importance of publicizing information about political prisoners. In her opinion, it is essential to tell the stories of illegally imprisoned Ukrainian citizens, spread them on social media and abroad, put pressure on Russia, initiate new resolutions of the European Parliament, and raise issues at the level of the OSCE and UN bodies so that Ukrainian citizens, political prisoners at risk with complex diseases, are released first and unconditionally

Mariupol policewoman Mariana Chechelyuk’s health has deteriorated significantly over the year of captivity
News - 18 July 2023

Mariupol policewoman Mariana Chechelyuk’s health has deteriorated significantly over the year of captivity

For a year, the occupiers transported the woman from one prison to another, subjected her to physical and psychological pressure, and created unbearable detention conditions. Currently, Mariana Chechelyuk needs medical care, which is not provided to her in the Taganrog detention center

126 Ukrainian women are in Russian captivity, most of them civilians
News - 04 July 2023

126 Ukrainian women are in Russian captivity, most of them civilians

As of the end of June 2023, 126 women are still in Russian captivity. This news was reported by the Ministry of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories and the National Information Bureau. “According to the National Information Bureau, as of the end of June 2023, 126 women are in Russian captivity. Of these, 46 […]