A gruesome clip emerged on social media on Tuesday, purportedly showing the execution of Russian prisoners of war by Ukrainian troops.
The video starts with the apparent murder of a severely wounded Russian serviceman, who was lying on a road. “Look, he’s still alive. He’s wheezing,” a voice said off screen before shots were fired at the defenseless soldier.
It then shows the bodies of several more Russians, scattered on the ground nearby in puddles of blood, as armed men with Ukrainian military insignia on their uniforms cheer as they walk among them.
At least one of the prisoners of war in the footage has his hands tied behind his back, and was apparently executed with a shot to the head at point-blank range. Some media outlets suggested that other soldiers may have had their throats slit.
The Ukrainian troops in the video are seen shouting “Glory to Ukraine! Glory to Heroes!” – a slogan belonging to World War Two Nazi collaborators which has been adopted by the country’s military – and discussing what gear they could loot from the corpses.