Four Ukrainian women taken prisoner by Russian forces have told the U.K.'s Telegraph newspaper of the systematic abuse and degradation they suffered in captivity.
Some were forced to march naked through the snow, they allege, while others said they were made to stand for more than 12 hours a day, the paper reported. Others say they were subjected to psychological torture, acts the Telegraph says could constitute war crimes.
The news outlet reported that one 53-year-old woman who served in Ukraine's National Guard said she and her fellow prisoners were led to freezing showers with bags over their heads, stripped, and paraded in front of the male guards.
"Afterwards, we were forced to sing the Russian anthem while naked," she said. "We returned to the cells in tears, utterly distraught, crying and in a state of hysteria… It was inhumane."
The same woman said she was beaten with a metal pole and then denied medical attention for an open wound.
Another female survivor told the Telegraph she had witnessed alleged multiple rapes. She said younger women were taken to where the Russian soldiers stayed and would cry when they returned.
Several women told the Telegraph they had received electric shocks from cattle prods and power cables during interrogations.
"If I answered in a way they didn't like, they would electrocute me," she said. "Sleep was impossible for days at a time. The guards even told us, 'We're feeding you just enough so you don't die.'"
"If it's hard for men, it's even harder for women—many of the women weren't fighters," one survivor told the Telegraph. Another told the paper the guards would beat them "just for fun."
The news outlet reported that one 53-year-old woman who served in Ukraine's National Guard said she and her fellow prisoners were led to freezing showers with bags over their heads, stripped, and paraded in front of the male guards.
"Afterwards, we were forced to sing the Russian anthem while naked," she said. "We returned to the cells in tears, utterly distraught, crying and in a state of hysteria… It was inhumane."
The same woman said she was beaten with a metal pole and then denied medical attention for an open wound.
Another female survivor told the Telegraph she had witnessed alleged multiple rapes. She said younger women were taken to where the Russian soldiers stayed and would cry when they returned.
Several women told the Telegraph they had received electric shocks from cattle prods and power cables during interrogations.
"If I answered in a way they didn't like, they would electrocute me," she said. "Sleep was impossible for days at a time. The guards even told us, 'We're feeding you just enough so you don't die.'"
"If it's hard for men, it's even harder for women—many of the women weren't fighters," one survivor told the Telegraph. Another told the paper the guards would beat them "just for fun."
'Surge' in torture allegations
Russia has faced multiple accusations of breaching the Geneva Convention regarding its treatment of prisoners.
Ukraine's Prosecutor General has said nine out of ten repatriated prisoners had suffered physical and psychological torture.
In March last year, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine issued a report revealing a surge in credible allegations of torture and executions of Ukrainian POWs.
"Almost every single one of the Ukrainian POWs we interviewed described how Russian servicepersons or officials tortured them during their captivity, using repeated beatings, electric shocks, threats of execution, prolonged stress positions, and mock execution. Over half of them were subjected to sexual violence," Danielle Bell, the head of the Mission, said at the time.
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