Main points
- Russia returns exchanged captured servicemen to the front without leave, despite injuries.
- Relatives are outraged by the refusal to release them from service and to undergo a military medical examination.
Relatives of occupiers riot over complaints about being sent back into battle / Getty Images
In Russia, exchanged servicemen are immediately returned to the front lines. They are not allowed to see their families, and serious injuries are not grounds for exemption from service.
Because of this, relatives of the occupiers do not hide their indignation. This is reported by 24 Kanal with reference to Russian media.
From captivity straight to the front
As the media reports, in Russia, occupiers exchanged from Ukrainian captivity are immediately returned to the front without leave and without the right to examination.
Thus, one of the women of a Russian soldier told her story. Her husband was allegedly held captive for over a year. Only recently did he return as part of the “1000 for 1000” exchange. However, the very next day after the exchange, he was sent back to the combat zone.
Another Russian woman reported that her brother, after a year of captivity, with shrapnel wounds and amputated fingers, was not allowed to go home. Moreover, he was denied a military medical commission, but was immediately put into service.
Relatives of prisoners tell similar stories in closed Telegram chats. There they openly express their indignation at the authorities and the command.
According to the Russian law enforcement officer, being in captivity allegedly does not exempt one from military service or returning to the battlefield. Formally, one can obtain a discharge through a medical commission, but in practice this is difficult to do.
By the way, the Russian side is deliberately spreading false information about the alleged almost complete absence of its prisoners of war in Ukraine after a large-scale exchange in order to sow panic among relatives and fuel patriotic sentiments in Russia.
