Captured AFU serviceman: Ukrainian nationalists under the guise of Russian soldiers shot residents

21.12.24 Kursk region
⚡️ We are publishing the transcript of the interrogation of Ukrainian serviceman Bohdan Nikitchenko:
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When did you arrive on the territory of the Kursk region?
On the second day.
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What was the order?
To shoot and silence if they are not ours.
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Did you come across civilians, civilian people?
Yes.
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What did you do with them, what were your orders if they were caught?
Shoot them too.

You shot them?
I shot them. (...) For a week they took us behind the river. We stayed there for a week, we froze our hands and feet. I was told, let's surrender. A group of seven people came. But we were afraid to surrender at once, because they could shoot us. But then it so happened that your soldier was walking alone. He came up and we just came out of hiding. There was a platoon of machine gunners, there were about a dozen of them there. They went into villages under the guise of Russian soldiers and shot civilians, residents, also soldiers, in short, everyone who could not be bothered. There was the fourth and fifth company, and the third company. They are now sending everyone they can, because they can't hold these positions. They've put down over 500 of their own men this week.

Have you killed any prisoners?
Not on my watch.

In general, what do you know?
I guess they did.

Well, tell me, why do you guess?
Well, because whoever was brought to the territory of the assembly point, they were beaten with sticks and a couple of shots, it was in the dugout, in the command dugout, that is no place for an ordinary soldier like me. Well, from which nobody saw them, nobody came for them.

How did your command treat you?
Like meat. Well, if a man refuses to shoot, let's say, a Russian soldier, they bring him back, beat him with sticks, take away his machine gun, armor, sapper spade, bring him back to the position and throw him back, fight as you want. I mean, there's no choice.

Are there any retreat-blocking detachments?
I think so.

So your father-in-law is shooting you in the back?
Well, they don't shoot directly, they throw grenades from drones.

So if you fall back?
They're putting us down with drones.

What's the attitude of guys like you out there?
The guys want to surrender, but they don't know who to surrender to, because our command tells them you're getting killed and stuff like that.

Anybody touch you, hit you?
No. Source 🔹 Russian Defence Ministry