Ukrainian Soldier Imprisoned for 679 Days: "Learned to Eat Rats in Russian Prison... A Hellish World"

Imprisoned in Russia for Nearly Two Years
"Beatings, Torture... Prisoners Abused"
"My Goal Is to Save My Friends Still There"

A Ukrainian soldier who was captured by Russia and held as a prisoner of war for 679 days described his time in captivity as "a hellish world."

On the 15th (local time), the Dijon regional daily newspaper Le Bien Public published an interview with Vladyslav Zadorin (25), who is touring the French region to testify about his imprisonment. He was captured by Russia while defending 'Snake Island' (Ukrainian name Zmiinyi Island) when Russia invaded Ukraine on February 4, 2022, and was imprisoned for about two years. He was released on January 3 last year during a large-scale prisoner exchange between the two countries.

Ukrainian soldier Vladyslav Zadorin, who was captured and released in Russia. X (formerly Twitter)

Zadorin said, "It was a hellish world. I still see the war in my dreams and hear the sounds of the prison," revealing that he was subjected to assault and torture during his imprisonment. He recalled, "The guards' beatings changed my skin color from blue to green, and from green to red," adding, "They used veterinary tools to deliver electric shocks to every part of the body." He continued, "I know the smell of burnt human flesh. Many prisoners had their genitals amputated."

Recalling the hunger in prison, he said, "We could only eat a piece of bread covered in sand. We learned to eat soap, toilet paper, and rats." In fact, before his detention, he boasted a robust physique weighing 120 kg, but at the time of release, his weight had dropped by about half.

Zadorin stated, "Russia remains stuck in the Middle Ages. They abuse prisoners in the same way as 100 years ago," and revealed, "They gave us false information, saying 'Ukraine no longer exists. It has already been occupied and become Russian territory.'" Along with this, he testified, "We were forced to sing the Russian national anthem every morning. If the guards were not pleased, we had to keep singing until the evening," and "We had to listen to Russian radio and read Russian history all day."

He attempted suicide during his imprisonment and is still suffering from the aftereffects of his captivity. Zadorin said, "My goal is to save my friends who are still there. That is why I am here," adding, "It is also to talk about Ukraine, but another reason is to prevent such things from happening in France."