Prisoners were tortured “every day, night, or even twice a day”. Abuses, armed attacks, threats of rape. It is the treatment of the Russian forces against the Ukrainians. This time it is not Kyiv but the ex-Russian officer Konstantin Yefremov who said it. He was now seen as a traitor and an escapee from the Kremlin and gave a lengthy interview to the BBC. Horror story in the words of Yefremov. He describes the “special operation” that Putin carried out in Ukraine about a year ago, in his own version.
This is her story, reported by journalist Steve Rosenberg. On February 10, 2022, Yefremov arrived in the Crimea at the head of the demining unit of the 42nd Rifle Division. The war had not yet broken out and they were told to participate in “military exercises”. Back then, no one believed that war would break out. Everyone thought it was just a drill. I’m sure senior officers don’t know either,” he explains.Yefremov recalls seeing Russian troops put identification marks on their uniforms and draw the letter “Z” on military equipment and vehicles. He decides to leave and conveys the decision to the commander. “He took me to a senior officer who called me a traitor and a coward – he says – I dropped my gun, jumped in a taxi and left. I wanted to go back to my base in Chechnya and officially resign. Then my comrades told me. He phoned me and warned me. A colonel called me up to 10 years in prison for desertion. He promised to shoot him and informed the police”.
“I was afraid of going to jail”, hence the decision to leave. Yefremov’s group was transferred to protect what he described as his “logistics headquarters” in the town of Bilmak, northeast of Melitopol. There, he said, he witnessed the interrogation and ill-treatment of Ukrainian prisoners.
“I witnessed torture and shootings”
“One day, three prisoners were brought there. One of them admitted that he was a sniper. Hearing this, the Russian colonel lost his mind. He hit him, pulled down the Ukrainian’s pants and asked if he was married. ‘Yes,’ he replied. The colonel said, “So someone gave me a rag. “We’ll turn you into a girl and send the video to your wife.”
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Another time, according to the same colonel, he asked a blindfolded prisoner to give the names of all the Ukrainian nationalists in his unit. “The Ukrainian did not understand the question. He said that the soldiers were marines of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. For this answer, they broke some of their teeth.” And again: “The colonel put a gun to the prisoner’s forehead and said, ‘I’ll count to three, then I’ll shoot you in the head.’ He counted and then fired from both sides, only to the side of his head. The colonel started shouting at him. ‘Comrade Colonel! He can’t hear you, he’s deaf. I said, ‘You did.
“I apologize to Ukraine”
At the end of May, he decides to resign in Chechnya. This time really. Conclusion? Threats and layoffs. He didn’t technically resign, but was sacked. A Russian human rights group helped him leave Russia.” I apologize to all the Ukrainian people for coming to their house as an intruder with a gun in my hand. Thank God I was not killed. I don’t even have the moral right to ask for forgiveness from Ukrainians. I can’t forgive myself, so they can’t forgive me either. “I can’t wait for them to forgive me,” he said.
Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
