Inside Russia’s New Gulag
Human-rights groups estimate that more than ten thousand Ukrainian civilians have disappeared into the Russian prison system. This is the story of one cell.
Liliia Prutian, a former medic in the Ukrainian Aidar Battalion, had been imprisoned in the SIZO-1 jail in Rostov for over a year. She was raped by Russian soldiers during an encounter near the village of Petrivske. Prutian had been previously detained in Donetsk, where she endured brutal interrogations. The jail in Rostov, while less brutal, was still an oppressive environment.
The women in her cell were primarily cooks from the Azov Brigade, a Ukrainian military unit that had been associated with nationalist militia. They were charged with illegal armed seizure of power. Russian propagandists considered both the Azov Brigade and Aidar to be terrorist organizations. Prutian and the other women hoped for a prisoner exchange, as Russia and Ukraine had resumed swapping prisoners in early 2024.
On the evening of September 10, 2024, the guards informed the women that they would be moved that evening. The women began packing their belongings, leaving any remaining food for the others. They shared a final moment of connection through the cell door, as the moment of truth approached.
Written by urgent.news from The New Yorker's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
