A Ukrainian court has handed a life sentence to Russian soldier Dmitriy Kurashov for the execution-style killing of a prisoner of war, marking the first conviction of its kind since the conflict began. Kurashov, 27, was found guilty in Zaporizhzhia of shooting a surrendered, unarmed Ukrainian soldier during a January 2024 battle near Pryiutne village, CNN reports. Prosecutors said the victim had run out of ammunition, raised his hands, and complied with Kurashov's orders before being shot at close range.
Kurashov's sentencing is seen as a precedent-setting moment, as Kyiv claims many Ukrainian POWs have died at the hands of Russian forces. The Ukrainian prosecutor general's office reports that as of early May, it had launched 75 criminal probes into the suspected execution of 268 Ukrainian POWs, with the number rising each year of the war. According to Ukrainian authorities, Kurashov had a prior conviction for theft in Russia and joined the Russian military in late 2023 under an amnesty deal.
The UN human rights mission in Ukraine reported in February that it had evidence of 79 executions by Russian troops since the previous August. The UN also reported knowledge of at least three calls by Russian public officials ordering or endorsing executions, per the BBC. The report said there was evidence that Ukraine had employed first-person drones to commit three illegal killings.
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