UKRAINE, KHARKIV, Jul. 29 — Today at 9 a.m., Kharkiv locals gathered on Freedom Square, in the very center of Kharkiv, to commemorate Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) from the Azov regiment that were killed by an explosion in Olenivka penal colony.
On Jul. 28, 2022, at nearly 11:30 p.m., an explosion killed 54 Ukrainian POWs and injured 150 more in the penal colony of the Russian-occupied village of Olenivka, Donetsk region. Since then, no one has been held accountable, and Russia continues to block any efforts to prosecute this case.
Maria Alieksieievych, the wife of an Azov soldier held in Olenivka, said that the penal colony was filled with the screams of Ukrainian POWs after the explosion. Some managed to get outside and waited to be evacuated, while prison guards left the impact site.
“Many of the soldiers bled to death,” Maria says.
The prisoners of war from the Azov regiment, who withdrew from AzovStal steel plant in Mariupol, were supposed to be treated humanely under international humanitarian law. Still, Russia violated those obligations, reported the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.
According to the Ukrainian side, the Russian forces hit the penal camp in Olenivka with artillery or blew it up from the inside.
“We remember and won’t forget,” “Your heart is beating because he sacrificed his,” “the innocent were executed — the guilty remain unpunished,” “captivity kills,” “Honor those killed in Olenvivka,” read the placards carried by people who gathered to commemorate the Ukrainian prisoners of war. They also honoured Ukrainian POWs with the moment of silence.
Iryna, the relative of two Ukrainian soldiers, said that one of her nephews was killed by Russia while defending Mariupol in Dontesk region, while the other remains in Russian captivity after surviving the explosion at Olenivka.
“It’s our duty to remember them. We live because Ukrainian soldiers died and risk every second of their lives for us,” Iryna said.
Ihor Shyshko, the head of Veterans’ Space of Kharkiv City’s Council, said that nearly 50 people came to honor Ukrainian POWs killed in Olenivka, most of them are families of the killed soldiers, captives, and those who went missing in action.
“I hope these events will be commemorated and we will install memorial plaques and monuments in honor of our heroes,” Shyhsko said.
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