Ukrainian prisoner of war Oleksandr Ishchenko, who served as a driver in the Azov regiment, died in SIZO-5 in Rostov-on-Don, a Mediazone correspondent reported from a session of the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don, which is considering the case of Ishchenko and 23 other Azov members.
The pre-trial detention centre has not yet managed to provide the court with documents confirming the defendant's death. The exact date and cause of death are also unknown.
Clarification. Ishchenko's death was confirmed by his daughter. He had died nine days ago, but the Russians did not inform his family, said Human Rights Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets. The Russians are also hiding the cause of death.
‘We have reported the tragedy to the ICRC and the UN, so that the organisations could record the death of the prisoner of war and pay attention to the conditions of detention of Ukrainian captured defenders. Ukraine demands that the Russian Federation strictly comply with the Geneva Conventions - provide the necessary medical care, set up a mixed medical commission to enable the repatriation of all seriously ill and seriously wounded,’ he said.
At today's session, the court finished examining the evidence in the case, but did not proceed to the debate in order to wait for the documents on Ishchenko's death from the detention centre. The debate is scheduled to take place on 7 August
Mediazone notes that Oleksandr Ishchenko was 55 years old and married. On 25 February 2022, Ishchenko joined the territorial defence of the Azov Special Forces regiment as a military driver. In the spring of 2022, he was taken prisoner by Russia in Mariupol and later became a defendant in a criminal case along with 23 other Ukrainians. Nine women are involved in the case, most of them cooks who prepared food for the Azov regiment.
Russian military accuse the defenders of Ukraine from the Azov regiment of a violent seizure of power and participation in the activities of a terrorist organisation.