Occupants are preparing to send Ukrainian prisoners of war to the front as part of the Bohdan Khmelnytsky battalion – ISW
The Russian military command is planning to send the Bohdan Khmelnytsky battalion, which consists of Ukrainian prisoners of war, to the front in the near future.
Russian state propaganda outlets reported that on November 7, soldiers of the Bohdan Khmelnytsky battalion took an oath of allegiance to Russia and would soon be deployed to Ukraine. It is noted that the formation will operate as part of the “Cascade” group of the so-called “DPR” terrorist organization in Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.
“Russian sources claim that the Russian command will treat prisoners of war in the same way as Russian soldiers, and that they will receive the same salary and benefits,” ISW noted.
Earlier, analysts claimed that the occupiers had “recruited” about 70 Ukrainian prisoners of war from various Russian penal colonies to serve in the Bohdan Khmelnytsky battalion. The Institute for War Studies believes that Ukrainians were forced to serve with the enemy, which is a clear violation of the Geneva Convention. It stipulates that “no prisoner of war may ever be sent to a combat zone” and should not be “employed in work that is harmful to health or dangerous”.
