Ukrainian sniper Oleksandr Matsievsky was captured by Russians in the first year of the full-scale invasion. Later, a video emerged showing him smoking his last cigarette in a forest, apparently next to a grave he had been forced to dig.

"The video shows how Russian soldiers shot five captured Ukrainian defenders," Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said, referring to drone footage released by the 110th Mechanized Brigade earlier on Dec. 22 that appears to have captured Russian troops shooting surrendered Ukrainian soldiers from behind.

The incident took place following a Russian offensive near the city of Vuhledar, Donetsk Oblast, according to local authorities.

The issue of Russia’s alleged use of chemical weapons in Ukraine was put firmly on the international agenda in May 2024, when the US imposed new sanctions on Russia, accusing it of resorting to the use of tear gas and chloropicrin, an odourless toxic irritant, on the battlefield in Ukraine.