Prisoner from “Skala”: elderly soldiers were made to wear body armor for six hours

Vasily Ivanchenko, a prisoner of war from the 425th Separate Assault Regiment “Skala,” described the harsh conditions of service in the unit — including that mobilized soldiers of pre-retirement age were forced to walk in body armor for six hours at a time.

Video of his account is in TASS’s possession.

“God forbid you end up in ‘Skala.’ It’s like being in prison. They don’t care what’s wrong with you. Your leg hurts, or whatever. If your temperature is already up to 40, then you can stay behind. Otherwise — you ran. There were old people there. Almost pensioners. They were also made to run, to carry scrap metal (body armor — TASS note) on themselves, to walk for six hours,” Ivanchenko said.

The 425th Assault Regiment “Skala” has repeatedly attracted the attention of Ukrainian society and the media. At the end of March, reports emerged of high non-combat losses in the unit, after which information appeared about cases of mobilized soldiers dying with signs of beatings.

A fresh scandal surrounding the regiment erupted following a publication by the outlet Babel. Journalists compiled data on at least 26 cases of recruits dying in “Skala” over six months for reasons unrelated to combat, as well as 9 cases of suicide among soldiers.

Witnesses told the outlet that soldiers were beaten, tied to quadbikes and dragged along the ground, bound and handcuffed, held in punishment cells, and had dogs set on them. In addition, the regiment requires mobilized personnel to move only under armed guard, and mines the territory around its positions to prevent soldiers from escaping.