When Yuri Hulchuk returned to Ukraine after two and a half years of Russian imprisonment, he looked strangely emotional. A video on social media shown that her mother hugged her on her return, but she does not react. A few days later, he talked about torture during the prisoner of war.
Hulchuk, 23, Ukraine was born in the capital, Kyiv and what was born. He studied foreign languages and although he did not graduate, what did he exchange of the student in Hungary and Germany and traveled all over Europe and China.
When he did not get any work, he admitted to the Ukrainian Army in December 2021 to complete it. In this way, Hulchuk Ekrainian Marines ended in the 36th brigade of Corps, when the Ukrainian city of Mariupol began in 2022 when the Russian invasion of his country began in the entire scale.
In April 2022, Hulchuk was captured by Russian forces and spent the next two and a half years in jail, including the Oleanivka village in Donnetsk in the Russian-quantity part of East Ukraine.
The Oleanivka Jail Colony has been designed as the “concentration camp” of the conditions there. In July 2022, more than 50 Ukrainian prisoners of the war held in Oleanivka were killed in an explosion that exploded through the barrack. Ukraine and Russia convicted each other for the incident. Analysis by the United Nations found what is the possibility of Russia.
Hulchuk, what hero in Reizan in Western Russia, as well as a Russian Republic of Mordovia. He returned home to a prisoner exchange in September 2024,
Torture systematic torture in Russian custody
Another Ukrainian man, 26 -year -old Vlad Zadorin, has talked about systematic torture in Russian jails. Zadorin joined the Ukrainian Army in 2019 and served in the 35th Brigade of Ukrainian Marine Corps. At the beginning of Russia’s full -scale invasion, he was stationed on the island of Snake in the Black Sea, where he was captured by the Russian Navy. Nearly two years later, in January 2024, he too returned home as part of a prisoner exchange.
Despite the two men who reported similar experiences, Zadorin and Hulchuk today have different views towards those who hurt them.
“I have been advised to publish the full name and address of the secret IK-10 [Russian prisons are numbered and start with IK] Camp in Mordovia, “Hulchuk said.” He is a drug there, a cruel man who likes to use electric shock. There are people who are not afraid to beat you, hands, feet, a pipe or a wet rip. ,
Hulchuk said that dogs were used to torture prisoners and the genitals of prisoners were given electric shocks.
Nevertheless, he said that he does not want to reveal the name of the man who harassed him.
“For me, what he did, which was part of all the bad things done to me,” Heer said. “If I avenge Russian, who treated me so badly in captivity, I would have to treat me badly to take revenge with Ukrainian.”
It is easy to forget and look forward, he said.
Was criminals to remember
Zadorin has a different opinion.
“I hate the Russians deeply because they have insulted us so much and insulted us,” said.
He fell to about half of his original weight of 120 kg (265 pounds). When O out of jail, his weight was just 60 kg. “I had to eat rats, toilet paper and soap,” Heer said.
Zadorin recalled severe physical violence in jail, as such as being hit on the head with bottles. “And I am going to love them and consider them brothers?” He asked. “They come to kill me and my family, without we never stayed on the subject.”
Zadorin said that he could identify each of his torturers. “Soon or later, everyone involved in such war crimes will be punished,” he insisted. “This is already happening in some cases.”
Both Hulchuk and Zadorin said that they received liberal payments from the Ukrainian state to compensate for their time in captivity. The fund was transferred to Hulchuk’s parents’ bank account at the time of being in jail the whole time and used money to buy an apartment in Kiev.
Returned prisoners may receive disability pension due to post-tractic stress disorder, or PTSD. Almost every returned prisoner of the war is diagnosed and, as Zadorin said, imprisonment may now be the basis for disability pension. He is soon planning to obtain a disability certificate.
Hulchuk plans to take another route. “Being classified as disabled, so deprived,” Heer said. “For example, it is difficult to find a job – even if you get help payment. I have never thought of taking this option because it is for me that I don’t see myself as an invalid.
Both Hulchuk and Zadorin said that after returning, they were free to decide if they wanted to return to military service.
“The superiors are relaxed about it and ask if you want to resign or not,” Zadorin said, who termed his contract with the army.
Hulchuk confirmed, “If I wanted to continue to serve or if I wanted to leave the armed forces, it was left for me.” “I decided to leave because I have done enough service. It was the only option for me. And as far as I know, a lot of returned prisoners also leave the army. Only a few remain.”
Looking for future
Since he left the army, Hulchuk did not have a certain job. He works part -time as an English teacher. He is learning German, taking a lesson singing and going to the gym.
“I just want to live silently this year, to recover physically and mentally,” Heer said. “Then I want to go to Germany, want to study there and find a job.”
“You don’t want unmothed men on the lines ahead – they were killed and people around them will be killed,” Zadorin explained. “that’s dangerous.”
Zadorin said that he sees her as working in the digital front line thesis days.
After the end of his military contract, he settled in Odessa and now he works to break the fake, which fights with Russian disintegration. So Zadorin regularly discusses its experience in media and across Europe.
Hey said that Russian officials do not accurately classify all Ukrainians that they hold as prisoners of war. Some Ukrainian soldiers are listed as killed or disappeared in action. Zadorin said that he believes that Ukrainian heroes are more in Russian jails than publicly stated.
There are more than 250 places in Russia where they are being held, Zadorin said, saying that he was in seven Hemal.
He said, “There are some conditions that are normal gel, where it is detailed and possibly enough to eat,” he said, adding the conditions on each site to determine whether a Ukrainian prisoner returns home as a “normal person”.
This story was the original published in Russian.
