Zelensky vows to find killers as unarmed soldier named

Ukrainian servicemen carry coffins with the bodies of their colleagues during a memorial ceremony in Kyiv yesterday. Photo: Alina Yarysh/Reuters

Kate Plummer

March 08 2023 02:30 AM

Volodymyr Zelensky has vowed to “find the murderers” of an unarmed Ukrainian prisoner of war apparently shot dead by Russian forces.

The man’s death was captured in graphic footage shared across social media.

Ukraine’s chief prosecutor announced a criminal investigation into the killing, and human rights chief Dmytro Lubinets said it was a violation of the Geneva Conventions.

The 12-second video, originally posted on Telegram before being shared on Twitter, shows the man in uniform with a Ukrainian insignia on his arm, smoking a cigarette in a wooded area. The man says “Slava Ukraini!” – Glory to Ukraine – before multiple shots are fired. The man then slumps to the ground.

Ukraine’s military has named the man as Tymofiy Shadura, a member of the 30th Separate Mechanised Brigade, who has been missing since February 3 near Bakhmut, the scene of some of the fiercest fighting in the war so far.

“Currently, the body of our serviceman is in the temporarily occupied territory. The final confirmation of the identity can be established after the return of the body and the relevant examinations,” the military said, citing what it called “preliminary information”.

The authenticity, date and location of the video have not been verified, nor has the identity given by the Ukrainian military.

Russia has not commented.

In a video address, Mr Zelensky said: “I want us all in unity to respond to his words, ‘Glory to the hero. Glory to the heroes. Glory to Ukraine’. And we will find the murderers.”

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba called for an immediate investigation by the International Criminal Court.