'Not a Single Russian Soldier Will be Taken Prisoner', Says Head of Georgian Legion in Ukraine

Mamuka Mamulashvili, the leader of the Georgian National Legion, a group of Georgians fighting alongside the Ukrainian military, has said in an interview that his unit will not be "taking any captives" among the Russian servicemen.

Mamulashvili was discussing a recent video, which appeared online, showing an unidentified Ukrainian unit executing captured Russian soldiers, who were unarmed and had their hands tied. The Georgian Legion's leader only noted that "sometimes [these people] have their hands tied" and expressed no opinion over the actions of the Ukrainian servicemen.

International law states that captured privileged combatants, a category which includes Russian servicemen taking part in the special military operation, must be treated humanely and be given medical attention if needed. Such captives can't be peremptorily executed by enemy combatants (servicemen) after their capture.

Russia launched the special military operation in Ukraine on 24 February after a request from the Donetsk and Lugansk People's republics (DPR and LPR) to defend them against attacks from the Ukrainian forces. After the operation's launch, Kiev announced that it would welcome any foreign mercenaries who want to fight the Russian soldiers, handing weapons out to them indiscriminately.

Moscow repeatedly warned against such a practice and cautioned western countries against sending more weapons to the Kiev regime. The Kremlin argued that these weapons might end up in the hands of mercenaries and terrorists, who would later become a security problem for the European Union and other countries.