AP uncovers the brutal fate of Ukrainian POWs in Russian captivity

By Hanna Arhirova, Vasilisa Stepanenko, Illia Novikov, Alex Babenko, Yehor Konovalov, Brad Foss, Marshall Ritzel, Panagiotis Mouzakis, Bram Janssen

While working on another long-term project in Ukraine, the AP team made a harrowing discovery: Ukraine was receiving not only the bodies of soldiers killed in combat, but also the remains of prisoners of war who had died in Russian captivity—evidence of a clear violation of the Geneva Conventions, which obligate detaining powers to ensure the survival of POWs.

Determined to uncover the truth, the team launched a months-long investigation under challenging conditions. Accessing autopsies was essential for independently verifying the causes of death, but it required persistent effort. Reporters also spent months locating families who had already received and identified the bodies of their loved ones.

Through dozens of interviews—on and off the record—with Ukrainian officials, human rights advocates, and international experts, the team pieced together a disturbing pattern of abuse and neglect. Their reporting revealed that Russia was systematically brutalizing captured Ukrainian soldiers, leading to the deaths of dozens in custody.

The story took on additional depth when AP’s investigative unit joined the effort. Editors Brad Foss, Marshall Ritzel and Bram Janssen helped the team reassess their materials and push further. One key suggestion: creating a visual collage of the dead—putting names, faces and stories to the statistics, humanizing those lost.

The final package provided exclusive access to forensic evidence and autopsies, identified prisons where the POWs died, and revealed that Ukraine is building a legal case for the International Criminal Court in The Hague. It was the first report to make that connection public.

Judges were deeply impressed by the team’s persistence, collaboration and impact in bringing global attention to war crimes that had gone largely unreported.

For their tenacious and collaborative efforts to expose this critical and overlooked reality, Hanna Arhirova, Vasilisa Stepanenko, Illia Novikov, Alex Babenko, Yehor Konovalov, Brad Foss, Marshall Ritzel, Panagiotis Mouzakis and Bram Janssen win this week’s Best of AP — First Winner.