Two more Britons held by Russian proxies in eastern Ukraine have been charged with fighting as mercenaries, Russian state media have reported, indicating that they could face the death penalty in a likely attempt to pressure Western countries to make a deal for their freedom.
Britons Andrew Hill of Plymouth and Dylan Healy of Huntingdon were reported to have also been charged with “forcible seizure of power” and undergoing “terrorist” training, according to a state news agency in Russian-controlled Donetsk.
The report was sourced to an anonymous official and has not been confirmed.
Two Britons and a Moroccan man were sentenced to death on identical charges by the authorities in Russian-controlled Donetsk last month. No date has been set for the sentences to be carried out and at least two of the men are appealing against the verdict.
Hill, who was identified as a father of four from Plymouth, has been paraded on Russian television in several clips, including one that aired last month with the headline: “Exclusive — before the execution.”
In the clip, he appeared to have been informed that he may face criminal charges, saying that he was being “detained here as a suspected mercenary.”
Hill, who is reported to have previously served in the Lancaster regiment of the British army, was first shown on Russian television after his capture in late April. In the video, the 35-year-old appeared to be severely injured, with his head bandaged, and his left arm in a cast and supported by a sling.
“I want to go home, to my homeland, to my family, to my children,” he said in the recent clip, which appeared to have been filmed under duress. “I just want to go home. I will tell them the truth.”
The other man, Dylan Healy, is reported to have been working in Ukraine as a humanitarian aid volunteer. He and another British man, Paul Urey, were reported to have been detained near Zaporizhzhia in southeastern Ukraine while driving to help a woman and two children to evacuate .
He was said to be working in Ukraine independently of any major aid organization.
A friend told ITV that he believed Healy had gone to Ukraine “to try to help and make a difference.”
The men’s backgrounds would likely have little influence on the outcome of a trial, which are carried out in the Donetsk People’s Republic, a proxy government recognized only by Russia and Syria.
In the previous trial, all three men were convicted of fighting as mercenaries, despite serving as enlisted soldiers in Ukraine’s 36th Marine Brigade and being entitled to the protections of the Geneva Conventions.
The Russian government has said it is also planning a larger tribunal for Ukrainian soldiers captured at the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol.
RE-EDUCATION: The ambassador to Australia told reporters that he understood there ‘might be a process for the people in Taiwan to have a correct understanding of China’ China’s ambassador to Australia yesterday said that Beijing is prepared to use “all necessary means” to prevent Taiwan from being independent, saying there can be “no compromise” on its “one China” principle. Chinese Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian (肖千) repeatedly told the National Press Club in Canberra that the US was to blame for the recent escalation in tensions, adding that China’s decision to launch ballistic missiles in live-fire exercises in response to US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan was “legitimate and justified.” Xiao said that after a “good start” with the new government of Australian Prime Minister
Newly married and with his first child on the way, auto worker Wang (王) wanted to move into the apartment he bought in Wuhan three years ago, but those hopes were dashed by China’s ballooning property crisis. Saddled with nearly US$300,000 in debt and with his unit nowhere near completion, the 34-year-old decided he had enough and stopped making mortgage payments. He is among numerous home buyers across dozens of cities in China who have boycotted payments over fears that their properties will not be completed by cash-strapped, debt-laden developers. “They said construction would resume soon,” Wang said, only giving his surname. “But
PROPAGANDA LEAFLETS: Seoul voiced ‘strong regret’ as Kim’s sister threatened to eradicate South Korean authorities for sending the virus across the border North Korean leader Kim Jong-un suffered from a “high fever” during a recent COVID-19 outbreak, his sister Kim Yo-jong said yesterday, as she vowed to “eradicate” South Korean authorities if they continued to tolerate propaganda leaflets the regime blames for spreading the virus. Kim Yo-jong blamed “South Korean puppets” for sending “dirty objects” across the border in leaflets carried by balloons, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. The revelation of her brother’s illness marked an unusual admission for a regime that rarely comments on the leader’s health — and then only to show that he shares the struggles of
A landmark sexual harassment case in China yesterday returned to court after an earlier ruling dealt a blow to the country’s fledgling #MeToo movement. Zhou Xiaoxuan (周曉璇) stepped forward in 2018 to accuse state TV host Zhu Jun (朱軍) of forcibly kissing and groping her during her 2014 internship at the broadcaster. While the case of Zhou, now 29, inspired many others to share their experiences of sexual assault publicly and sparked a social media storm, a court ruled last year there was insufficient evidence to back her allegation. Zhou appealed, and returned to court for another hearing yesterday in Beijing. “I still feel
RSS