Russians broke ribs of Azov soldier Ishchenko before his death and did not sew up his body after autopsy - WP
Russians broke the ribs of Oleksandr Ishchenko, a defender of the Azov regiment, with a blunt object before he died in a detention center in Rostov-on-Don.
This is reported by the Washington Post, which spoke with the widow of the deceased Ukrainian soldier, Olena, Censor.NET reports.
According to the newspaper, Ishchenko's relatives believe that the Russians did everything to prevent them from identifying the remains and finding out the cause of death. According to the widow of the deceased, Olena, the Russians did not sew up Oleksandr's body after the autopsy. Therefore, the remains, delivered from the prison in Rostov-on-Don, decomposed.
"He was torn to pieces. It seemed like the Russians did everything to prevent us from identifying him and finding out the real cause of his death," the woman said.
Washington Post journalists managed to familiarize themselves with the Russian and Ukrainian autopsy reports on Oleksandr's body.
The Russian accompanying document stated that the cause of death could not be determined "due to putrefactive changes in the organs and tissues of the corpse".
However, the initial Ukrainian examination reported "shock, multiple rib fractures, closed blunt chest trauma, injuries due to contact with a blunt object, intent unknown". The family of the defender says they are still waiting for the final report and that the cause of death remains unclear.
The family learned about Oleksandr's death from his lawyer. The newspaper writes that in order to speed up the return of the body, the relatives contacted a private funeral service in Kyiv, which developed a complex plan to return Ishchenko's body home for $4,000.
A person was sent to Russia to pose as Oleksandr's nephew and tell Russian officials that he would take his body to Armenia. Thus, the body of the soldier was returned to Ukraine.
Death of "Azov" Oleksandr Ishchenko in Russian captivity
On July 31, 2024, it became known that one of the captured Ukrainian soldiers of the Azov regiment, 55-year-old Oleksandr Ishchenko, died in a Russian detention center.
The Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets sent an immediate letter to the Russian Ombudsman Tatyana Moskalkova regarding the death of Mariupol defender Oleksandr Ishchenko in Russian captivity. Lubinets also informed the ICRC and the UN about the tragedy.
Sviatoslav Palamar, deputy commander of the Azov brigade, said that Oleksandr Ishchenko, a prisoner of war of the Azov regiment, died a violent death in Rostov-on-Don, Russia.
