The detainees include members of the Azov Battalion who were trapped in the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, according to earlier statements by the Russian Defense Ministry. The prison is located in the town of Olenivka, just 10 kilometers from the Ukrainian fronts. “Right now, my husband is not on the lists and I believe he is alive,” said Alina Nesterenko, whose husband was taken to Russian-held Donetsk prison after surrendering in Azovstal. “But many children are dead, many children were injured in Olenivka [prison].” Russia published lists of 75 injured and 50 dead – although these have not been confirmed by Ukrainian authorities or the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which has been monitoring prison conditions. “It’s not clear what happened, but you can’t bring people back to life,” Nesterenko said. The prison holding Ukrainian prisoners of war (PoWs) was bombed on Thursday night, killing at least 50, according to Ukrainian and Russian authorities. Russia and Ukraine have blamed each other for the attack. Ukraine said Russia did it to cover up the mistreatment of prisoners. The detainees should have been protected by guarantees provided by the United Nations and the Red Cross, Volodymyr Zelenskiy said. Together with his foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, he urged these organizations to intervene and investigate. Meanwhile, the Russian occupation authorities blamed the attack on Ukraine, saying it used a US-supplied Himari to strike the facility in order to deter Ukrainian forces who may be considering surrender. The Russian embassy’s Twitter account in the UK called for the Azov fighters to be executed by hanging rather than by firing squad as they are “not real soldiers”. The statement has been criticized by commentators in the UK. It is impossible for the Guardian to verify the versions put forward by either side. We must expel the Russian ambassador – the embassy is openly using the room allocated to the UK to support yet more war crimes. pic.twitter.com/S0iWjM0Wc8 — Mark Wallace (@wallaceme) July 29, 2022 Ukraine’s Western partners appear to be on its side. European Union High Representative Josep Borrell blamed Russia for the attack in a statement on Friday. Borel also condemned videos circulating on pro-Kremlin media networks of a Russian soldier castrating a Ukrainian soldier. Aric Toler, from the Bellingcat research team, said the video showed no signs of editing or manipulation and that it was possible to identify the perpetrator. The International Committee of the Red Cross requested on Friday access to the prison area and the removal of the injured. Nesterenko could not be sure her husband was safe as she had not heard from him since he left Azovstal, with matters complicated by the fact that Russia refused to confirm his status in prison. He said he was one of the first to come out of Azovstal, but the ICRC was not yet present. Since then, he said, he had filled out the necessary ICRC forms and the Ukrainian side had confirmed that he is a prisoner in Olenivka, but Russia had not. “I know he is a prisoner in Olenivka because I have seen him periodically in various photos and videos of the cafeteria and in lineups,” Nesterenko said. “All [our] The guys are almost unrecognizable, they look exhausted, thin, pale and their skin has taken on a yellow color.” Although some of the families believed their loved ones had survived, others were nervously waiting for news from the relevant Ukrainian authorities, he said. “Three of us haven’t heard anything (from the Ukrainian authorities) so we’re assuming they’re fine, another girl’s husband was injured and then there’s another one whose husband was in the barracks that was hit but didn’t hear anything,” said Nesterenko. . Subscribe to First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7am. BST “According to the Geneva Convention they are allowed to call every two weeks, this has not happened,” Nesterenko said. He said work on the prisoner exchange appeared to have stalled since 144 seriously wounded militants were exchanged in June. Relatives of Ukrainian POWs from Azovstal have called on the world to recognize Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism “which violates the rules of war and does not comply with the Geneva Conventions”. The statement also calls on the ICRC and the UN, as guarantors of Azovstal’s handover, to travel to the prison to investigate what happened, check on the injured and facilitate the transfer of the bodies.