Ukrainian forces storm penal colony in Kursk Oblast where Ukrainian prisoners were held, human rights activists say

Ukrainian forces are trying to seize a women’s penal colony in the village of Malaya Loknya in Russia’s Kursk Oblast, where Ukrainian prisoners were held, Media Initiative for Human Rights reported on Aug. 23.
Ukraine started its incursion into Russia’s Kursk Oblast on Aug. 6. As of Aug. 20, the Ukrainian military said it controlled 1,263 square kilometers (488 square miles) and 93 settlements, including the town of Sudzha.
The seizure of the penal colony will be an important step in documenting war crimes committed by Russia against prisoners of war, human rights activists said.
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, one of the main places where Ukrainian prisoners were held was a detention center in the city of Kursk, according to the Media Initiative for Human Rights.
Subsequently, the organization found that female prisoners were also taken to the women’s penal colony in Malaya Loknya, which is designed to hold over 200 people. In the fall of 2022, more than 50 captured military and civilian women were held there, the Media Initiative for Human Rights said.
The human rights organization documented the testimonies of several prisoners held in this colony. They mentioned that physical force and humiliation were used against them, which led to significant health problems.
Former prisoners also said that they could not remember the wardens or the administration of the colony because they hid their faces and did not allow prisoners to raise their heads when the staff entered the cell.
The penal colony in Malaya Loknya served as a temporary detention facility before prisoner exchanges, with prisoners held there up to several months, the Media Initiative for Human Rights said, citing witnesses.