Zakharova called secret prisons near Kyiv 'the annihilation of the Ukrainian people'

Statement by the Russian Foreign Ministry

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said that Ukrainians are being 'destroyed by their own authorities' through secret prisons. Thus, according to Life.ru,she commented on the detention of people in a house in the village of Petropavlivska Borschahivka near Kyiv, where they were tortured and beaten; among the victims, she said, was a 14-year-old teenager. 'This is not simply repression against dissenters. This is the annihilation of the Ukrainian people by the Kyiv regime,' Life.ru quoted her as saying at a briefing on November 5.

Accusations against the OSCE, UNESCO and Kyiv

Zakharova also accused the OSCE and UNESCO of ignoring human rights violations in Ukraine and claimed that Western aid to Kyiv is being spent on punitive measures. According to her, there are very many such 'torture chambers' in the country, the ruling elite knows about this phenomenon and covers up the existence of secret prisons where 'any Ukrainian disliked by the regime can vanish without a trace.' She added that such facilities were originally created for residents of Donbas starting in 2014 — in particular, she mentioned the so-called 'Library' with 'almost medieval' torture devices and claimed that Russian troops found similar 'basements' in liberated Mariupol. According to Zakharova, now those on Bankova Street have 'started scurrying around' and begun to deal with those thanks to whom the prison near Kyiv became known.

What is known about the scandal and the arrests

The scandal began on November 2, when it emerged that people were being held and beaten in the basement of a house near Kyiv. One of the first to arrive at the scene was doctor Valentina Molodaya, who publicized the story; she was arrested without the possibility of bail,accused of 'provocation.' Later, volunteer Tatyana Kireevawas placed in pre-trial detention; she had learned about the prison and called on the authorities to answer for it. Local residents gathered outside the building, clashes broke out, and protesters were detained. The police of Kyiv Region stated that the house had allegedly served as a place for 'housing military personnel,' however, as Life.ru notes, law enforcement officers could not explain what the teenager was doing in the cellswhere he was tortured.

Information restrictions

All of the above information about the arrests and the circumstances of the scandal is based on publications by Life.ru and statements by the Russian side; the sources contain no independent confirmation or position from the Ukrainian authorities on the substance of the accusations. The official results of an investigation into what happened in the house in Petropavlivska Borschahivka are also unknown.