Kyiv, Ukraine – A disturbing combination of intercepted radio communications and drone footage appears to capture Russian commanders ordering their troops to execute surrendering Ukrainian soldiers — a potential war crime under international law.

The chilling transmissions, obtained by Ukrainian intelligence and shared with CNN, allegedly took place during a November 2024 assault in the Zaporizhzhia region. According to Ukrainian officials, the radio orders correspond to drone footage showing six Ukrainian troops lying face down, with at least two shot at point-blank range, and another led away.

The Order: ‘Take the Commander and Kill the Rest’

Intercepted radio chatter recorded around 12:05 p.m. local time captures a Russian commander repeatedly issuing a brutal order:

“Take the commander captive and kill everyone else.”

According to transcripts reviewed by CNN, the command is given at least six times. In one instance, the commander shouts:

“Take the senior, get rid of the others!”

The drone footage, timestamped from 12:27 to 12:30 p.m., appears to confirm the grisly sequence of events. A masked soldier emerges from the trees, approaches the prone Ukrainians, and shoots one in the head. Another soldier — possibly a unit commander — removes his gear and is taken away.

‘We Killed the Others’

In the radio recordings, a soldier using the callsign “Arta” is heard confirming the outcome:

“We killed the f**king others.”

The audio, reviewed by forensic expert Robert Maher of Montana State University, shows no signs of tampering and is consistent with genuine military communications.

Suspected Pattern of War Crimes

The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) links the incident to the Storm unit of Russia’s 394th Motorized Rifle Regiment. This same unit is also accused of a gruesome beheading of a Ukrainian soldier in the same area.

Ukraine’s Prosecutor General has launched 75 investigations into the suspected executions of 268 Ukrainian prisoners of war. The numbers, officials say, are rising:

• 2022: 8 cases, 57 soldiers
• 2023: 8 cases, 11 soldiers
• 2024: 39 cases, 149 soldiers
• 2025 (so far): 20 cases, 51 soldiers

Officials believe this is more than rogue behavior — it’s a systemic policy backed by top military and political leaders in Russia.

“These actions would not happen so frequently without consent from the highest command — which, in Russia, means the Presidency,” said UN special rapporteur Morris Tidball-Binz.

Political and Military Implications

The Russian Ministry of Defense has not responded to requests for comment. Previously, Moscow has denied committing war crimes, claiming to treat prisoners of war in line with international standards.

However, Ukrainian officials say the pattern suggests otherwise. The intercepted audio and matching drone footage are among the strongest evidence yet that Russian forces are executing soldiers who surrender.

“Putin called captured Ukrainians ‘terrorists.’ We all know how he treats people labeled that way,” said Yurii Bielousov, head of Ukraine’s war crimes unit.

Bohdan Okhrimenko, who works on Ukraine’s treatment of POWs, added that executing captives may be a logistical decision for Russian troops:

“Capturing and transporting prisoners is complicated. Shooting them is, sadly, simpler from their perspective.”

Mounting Global Attention

This incident marks one of the first times radio orders have been directly linked to drone-captured executions — a chilling escalation in already brutal warfare. It follows a previous CNN investigation from September detailing similar killings near Pokrovsk.

Ukraine says it’s doubling down on ensuring humane treatment of Russian POWs — partly to maintain moral high ground, and partly to secure future prisoner exchanges.

“Violence breeds violence,” said Okhrimenko. “But we won’t let ourselves fall to their level.”

Source: CNN – Exclusive: Intercepted radio chatter and drone footage appear to capture Russian orders to kill surrendering Ukrainian troops

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A man filmed by CNN being freed from a Damascus prison by rebel forces has been identified by local residents as a former intelligence officer under the Assad regime—not an ordinary citizen, as he initially claimed.

The Discovery of the Prisoner

CNN’s chief international correspondent, Clarissa Ward, and her team were following leads on the disappearance of U.S. journalist Austin Tice when they encountered the prisoner. The team, accompanied by a rebel guard, entered a Damascus jail that had been padlocked from the outside. After the guard broke the lock with a gun, the team found a man huddled alone under a blanket in the cell.

Appearing disoriented, the man identified himself as Adel Ghurbal, a resident of Homs in central Syria. He claimed to have been imprisoned for three months, moved between three different prisons, and seemed unaware that the Assad regime had fallen. The jail was previously under the control of the Syrian Air Force Intelligence Directorate until the regime’s collapse.

Revelations of the Man’s True Identity

However, evidence obtained later points to a starkly different reality. A photograph provided by a resident of Homs revealed the man’s actual identity as Salama Mohammad Salama, a lieutenant in Assad’s Air Force Intelligence Directorate. Facial recognition software confirmed a 99% match between the man filmed by CNN and the individual in the photograph, which shows him in military clothing at what appears to be a government office. CNN has withheld the image to protect the source’s anonymity.

Reputation and Accusations

Residents of Homs corroborated this identification, stating that Salama, also known as Abu Hamza, was notorious in the city for overseeing checkpoints run by the Air Force Intelligence Directorate. Locals accused him of engaging in widespread extortion and harassment.

While it remains unclear how Salama ended up imprisoned in Damascus, Syrian fact-checking website Verify-Sy reported that his detention stemmed from a dispute over “profit-sharing from extorted funds with a higher-ranking officer.” According to Verify-Sy, Salama had been jailed for less than a month. CNN has not independently verified this claim.

Aftermath and Unanswered Questions

Following his release, rebel forces handed Salama over to the Syrian Red Crescent. The medical relief organization later shared a photograph on social media, stating they had reunited a freed prisoner with relatives in Damascus. Salama’s current whereabouts remain unknown, and CNN has been unable to reestablish contact with him.

This revelation raises significant questions about the identities of prisoners freed during the chaos of Syria’s conflict and highlights the challenges in distinguishing between regime operatives and ordinary detainees.

Source

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