A BBC World Service investigation has revealed allegations of abuse and torture in detention centers run by Russian-backed forces in parts of Ukraine occupied since 2014. Former prisoner Liudmyla Huseinova described being seized in 2019 and subjected to harsh conditions at the Izolyatsia detention centre, where detainees were forced to stand from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. under bright lights at night. She recalled hearing "terrible screams" from other rooms and said her soul and body were "crippled" during her three years and 13 days in captivity.

Huseinova identified Yurii Temerbek, a former Ukrainian traffic policeman turned separatist, as one of the men involved in her detention and abuse. She said Temerbek was present during a sexual assault by a man with a Russian accent. The BBC investigation also identified Oleksii Sivak, a 42-year-old sailor, who said he was among hundreds arrested following Russia's capture of Kherson in 2022 during what pro-Kremlin sources described as a crackdown on terrorists.

The investigation sheds light on a secretive detention system operating largely outside the reach of Ukrainian and international legal mechanisms. When questioned, the Russian Embassy in the UK stated that Russia "consistently advocated respect for international law and the rule of law" and that allegations of crimes during the Ukraine conflict "are documented and investigated."

Huseinova expressed a desire for justice, saying, "then, justice for me will be their names as criminals, and torturers, will be known to their children."

Sources