Russian covert prison in Belarus exposes war crime trail
An investigation by journalists from Radio Svoboda has uncovered the precise location of a filtration camp in the Belarusian town of Narowla, where the Russian military detained and tortured Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilians, including children.
Journalists from Radio Svoboda's "Schemes" project, in collaboration with the Belarusian Investigative Center and the groups The Reckoning Project and Cyber Partisans, identified the site where Russian forces set up a filtration camp in the spring of 2022, used for the illegal detention of Ukrainians.
The camp was located on the premises of the state enterprise Pripyat Alliance in Narowla, controlled by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. The location was confirmed through analysis of video footage and satellite images.
According to survivors' accounts, detainees were subjected to interrogations and beatings, and recordings of them were used in Russian propaganda films. Human rights defenders regard this camp as one of the most brutal in terms of the treatment of prisoners.
Ukrainian soldiers were tortured in Belarus
Some Ukrainians who went through the camp in Narowla remain in Russian captivity, including in penal colonies. Upon release, they only noted that the place resembled a "collective farm," without knowing the exact location.
The investigation also published footage found in the Kyiv region from a Russian soldier's camera, showing a column of troops entering Ukraine from Belarus on February 24, 2022, near Chernobyl. These soldiers later appeared in propaganda materials from the camp in Narowla.
As reported by Radio Svoboda, the investigation sheds new light on the actions of Russian forces on Belarusian territory during the invasion of Ukraine. The Polish Press Agency reports that the revealed information may serve as evidence in future proceedings concerning war crimes.
