I just watched a video of Ukrainian veteran Vladyslav Zadorin, who spent 22 months in a Russian prison. What he talks about is terrible; it is physical and mental torture on a daily basis. Please share this summary so that the world understands what kind of evil Russia is.
"We spent 12 hours lying on a pier after being captured on Snake Island. It was late February, it was cold, and the sea was stormy, and freezing water kept splashing on us." /1
"After arriving at the colony, we stood in the cold snow for hours—some for a few hours, others for up to 15." /2
"In the colony, they gave us a bowl of clear water with a single strand of beet in it. When we asked what it was, they said, 'This is your Ukrainian borscht.'" /3
"One guy was forced to do a thousand squats because his heels don't touch the floor when squatting. If you run out of energy, they will use a taser." /4
"They used a taser everywhere—inside our mouths, on genitalia, and even in the rectum. The pain and adrenaline made it feel like we could climb walls." /5
"One guard beat prisoners so badly he broke over 10 bottles on my head. I now have a traumatic brain injury. This guard would beat us on the spine, trying to force the vertebrae inward. This guard had grandkids in Kharkiv, Ukraine." /6
"They gave me clothes that were deliberately too small just to mock me, even though I weighed 120 kg." /7
"On the way to the shower, we had to shout 'one, two, three, four' in German. They said we were fascists and we should shout in the 'language of the fascists.'" /8
"One guard loved the Russian band Sector Gaza. We had to sing their songs to get food. Those who refused to sing went hungry."
"Besides, we had to sing the Russian anthem 30-50 times a day." /9
"Some were sexually abused. They inserted objects into the rectum, and some were beaten to death." /10
"One prisoner’s tongue was cut in two like a snake's. They would loosen teeth with pliers so they'd fall out over time." /11
"They’d give out too little food or give some people full plates and others less. This was done to cause an animal instinct. This sometimes led to fights. 'It’s terrifying,' he said." /12
"I ate worms to survive. Protein is energy, and you need it to survive. Some people even ate toilet paper and dipped it in soup." /13
"A nurse offered to cut our tendons so we couldn’t escape." /14
"One guy slit his wrists because he wasn’t exchanged. I also wanted to commit suicide. We often moved to other colonies, thinking you were moving for an exchange." /15
"When they asked for my clothing size, my heart pounded. I was afraid of being moved to another colony. I just wanted to go home." /16
"When I heard 'Glory to Ukraine' in neutral territory after exchange, I cried. It was after 22 months in captivity." /17
"After captivity, I had gallstones, brain injuries, damaged neck vertebrae, rotting fingers, and a dislocated pelvis. I weighed 120 kg before captivity and only 60 after." /18
"In Sumy, I was given a buckwheat soup. As I ate, I couldn’t believe this was real life—no more stale bread and slop. Health and freedom are the most important things in life."
Over the centuries, the area saw numerous territorial formations. The Kingdom of Abkhazia was one of them, existing for 200 years until it united in 1008 with the Kingdom of Iberia, forming the Kingdom of Georgia. /1
The kingdom peaked in the 13th century but was later crushed by the Mongol invasion of Europe. Afterward, the region fragmented into smaller principalities. /2
1/ The first time Russia tried to annex Ukrainian territories.
THREAD Tuzla Island. #RussiaDecolonized
2/ The geography and history of the island are very interesting.
The island is situated between Crimea and Krasnodar Krai (Russia).
3/ Tuzla Island was formed when the spit that continued the Taman peninsula (Russia) suffered from massive erosion during a major storm in 1925. The island is 6 km long and 600 m wide.
Heartbreaking story: Marine officer Andriy Turas returned home after 2.5 years in captivity, reuniting with his wife Olena, a combat medic. She was released earlier, learning she was pregnant. Andriy returned to find out he has son, now almost two years old.
1/ "In February, rumors spread that a war was coming. We were on high alert and slept in our clothes a few days before it began. We knew Mariupol would take the biggest hit, but we couldn’t grasp the full scale of it."
2/ "During the invasion, we took up defense at the Azov Mash plant, hid equipment, and set up observation points. The city was in chaos. There was no food. We stayed in a bunker at the plant, eventually drinking technical water because there was no other option."
#RussiaDecolonized The Sandarmokh Executions of November 1937 and Their Legacy in Today’s Russia. THREAD
1/ Sandarmokh is a forest near Medvezhyegorsk in Karelia, Russia, where thousands of victims of Stalin’s Great Terror were executed in 1937-38.
2/ On October 27 and November 2, 3, and 4, 1937, mass executions took place. A break between October 27 and November 2 is thought to be due to a failed escape attempt by prisoners who knew their chances of survival were slim. The attempt was unsuccessful, and they were shot.
#RussiaDecolonized Масові страти у Сандармоху в листопаді 1937 року. ТРЕД
1/ Сандармох — це ліс поблизу Медвеж’єгорська в Карелії, Росія, де в 1937-38 роках було страчено тисячі жертв Великого терору Сталіна.
2/ 27 жовтня та 2, 3 і 4 листопада 1937 року відбулися масові страти. Перерва між 27 жовтня та 2 листопада, імовірно, була викликана невдалою спробою втечі ув’язнених, які розуміли, що їхні шанси на виживання були мізерні. Спроба була невдалою, і їх розстріляли.
THREAD: In September 2024, Mariupol defender Valery Horishniy, known as "Yarylo," was exchanged among 15 Azov soldiers who were returned home.
He had endured torture in the Donetsk torture chamber known as "Isolation," experiencing horrors difficult to imagine.
PLEASE AMPLIFY
AZOVSTAL
"To be honest, we didn’t think much about being taken prisoner. We were more inclined to think we’d just die there." /1
"Some commanders wanted permission from Redis to leave Azovstal on their own. Redis forbade it, saying that the priority was to preserve lives and help the wounded." /2