Ukrainian forces say Russian troops executed captured soldiers on Huliaipole direction
Ukraine's "South" force grouping reported on 17 October 2026 that Russian troops executed previously captured Ukrainian service members on the Huliaipole direction in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. The allegations rely on intercepted Russian communications and drone video; Ukraine's Office of the Prosecutor General has opened a war-crime investigation. The "South" spokesperson named the 38th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade and its commander as likely responsible and called for an international response.
Key points
- Incident location: Huliaipole direction, Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
- Likely perpetrators: soldiers of Russia's 38th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade.
- Evidence: intercepted Russian-language orders including "finish off this 300-series one" and "zero him out immediately," plus drone video.
- Reported number killed: approximately two unarmed Ukrainian prisoners of war.
- Spokesperson Maksym Kravchuk named the brigade commander, Colonel Valeriy Kazak, as the source of such orders.
- Ukraine's Office of the Prosecutor General opened pretrial proceedings under Article 438 of Ukraine's Criminal Code (war crime causing death).
- Context: Ukraine's ombudsman has recorded at least 337 alleged deliberate executions of surrendered Ukrainian troops; the UN has confirmed at least 129 POW killings since the full-scale invasion began.
Why it matters
The case adds to a documented body of alleged Russian executions of captured Ukrainian troops and supplies specific operational evidence — intercepted commands, drone footage, a named unit — that could support future prosecution or tribunal proceedings. It also draws a direct line from frontline conduct to the brigade command level, with the unit's commander explicitly named by Ukraine's military as the initiator of such orders.
What happened
On 17 October 2026, Maksym Kravchuk, spokesperson for Ukraine's "South" (Південь) force grouping, told Ukrainska Pravda that Russian occupiers had executed Ukrainian service members they had previously captured on the Huliaipole direction in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. The incident was recorded by Ukrainian servicemen several days earlier. According to Kravchuk, the perpetrators likely belong to Russia's 38th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade, and orders of this kind in the brigade are issued at the initiative of its commander, Colonel Valeriy Kazak. Ukrainian forces obtained audio intercepts of the moment of the crime, including Russian-language commands to "finish off this 300-series one" and "zero him out immediately," as well as video captured by a Ukrainian drone over the site. The reporting places the number of unarmed prisoners killed at approximately two. Materials were handed over to law enforcement agencies. Ukraine's Office of the Prosecutor General opened pretrial proceedings under Part 2 of Article 438 of Ukraine's Criminal Code (war crime causing death), with the case guided by the Zaporizhzhia Oblast Prosecutor's Office. Investigators are working to establish the circumstances, the direct perpetrators, and those who may have ordered the killing. Kravchuk characterized the killing as a gross violation of international humanitarian law and appealed to the international community to respond and pursue accountability.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
All reporting is Ukrainian and broadly uniform. Outlets including Ukrainska Pravda, ZN.UA, NV, Ukrinform, Hromadske, and LIGA.net lead with the "South" force grouping's account and the prosecutor-general's formal proceedings. Coverage foregrounds the intercepted Russian commands and drone footage as documentary evidence, names the 38th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade and its commander, Colonel Valeriy Kazak, as the likely perpetrators, and frames the event within a wider documented pattern of executions of surrendered Ukrainian troops captured by ombudsman and UN tallies.
Where reporting differs
Two points of uncertainty run through the reporting. First, the number of prisoners killed: the spokesperson's account and preliminary reporting indicate approximately two unarmed Ukrainian prisoners, while the Office of the Prosecutor General has not specified a number or exact date. Second, attribution: reporting ties the execution to the 38th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade and its commander as probable rather than confirmed, with some accounts stating that similar orders in the brigade originate with Colonel Valeriy Kazak.
Background
The Huliaipole direction is part of the front in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, where Ukrainian forces face the Russian 38th Separate Motor Rifle Brigade. The intercepted phrases translate roughly as orders to finish off a wounded Ukrainian serviceman — "300-series" refers to a wounded soldier under military medical coding — and to eliminate him on the spot. Ukraine's Office of the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights had recorded data on at least 337 alleged deliberate executions of Ukrainian troops who surrendered into captivity as of May 2026. The UN has separately confirmed the killing by Russia of at least 129 Ukrainian prisoners of war since the start of the full-scale invasion.