A Ukrainian female political prisoner has spoken out about brutal torture in Russian captivity. Journalist Iryna Danylovych has appealed to the European Parliament, asking to pay attention to the terrible conditions in Russian Women’s Colony No. 7 in Zelenokumsk, Zmina reports. 

Danylovych’s relatives have delivered the appeal to Pina Picierno, the Vice-President of the European Parliament. 

The Ukrainian woman describes the colony as “an endless hell.” At night, the Russians never turn the lights off, making it impossible to sleep even with a blindfold. Every day, loud equipment operates in the barracks for several hours, which is especially difficult for her due to chronic ear inflammation, which goes untreated there.

Prisoners are also forced to stand outside for hours in cold and bad weather.

The journalist calls on the European community and Russian Ombudswoman Tatyana Moskalkova to intervene in the situation.

Before her arrest, Iryna defended the rights of medical workers in Crimea and reported on violations in healthcare. In 2022, she was abducted by FSB agents, held in a basement without a lawyer, and later sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of possessing explosives.

Earlier, 22-year-old Ukrainian soldier Valentyn Marynych came back home from 36 months in Russian captivity. He said Russian troops beat him with rebar, bricks, knuckledusters, belts, fists, and boots during regular runs through crowds of occupiers. 

Vitalii Shabunin, Ukraine’s top anti-corruption activist and head of Ukraine’s Anti-Corruption Action Center, has been charged in a controversial criminal case. The State Bureau of Investigation has accused him of evasion of military service and misuse of a vehicle intended for the military, sparking a public outcry and allegations of political persecution, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty writes. 

According to investigators, Shabunin allegedly “systematically evaded” military service during martial law and illegally used a vehicle imported as humanitarian aid for the Armed Forces, including for personal travel in Kyiv. They claim the vehicle was never officially registered for military use.

He has been charged under two articles of the Ukrainian Criminal Code:

• Part 4, Article 409 — evasion of military service under martial law
• Part 2, Article 190 — large-scale fraud

The maximum penalty is up to 10 years in prison. 

Shabunin’s response

The activist has denied all allegations and called the case politically motivated. He published a photo of his military ID issued on 25 February 2022, the day after Russia’s full-scale invasion began.

He says he served on the front lines with Ukraine’s Armed Forces from the first days of the war, first near Kyiv, then in eastern Ukraine. After combat duty, he joined the Ministry of Defense to work on logistics reform and digital projects, including the Delta situational awareness system, according to the BBC.

In February 2025, he was transferred to a border guard unit in Kharkiv Oblast, a move he links to retaliation for his outspoken criticism of the government.

Civil society reacts: “An attack on free speech and democracy”

More than 50 non-governmental organizations, human rights groups, and civic organizations have appealed to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, and the State Bureau of Investigation’s Head, Oleksii Sukhachov, demanding that the investigation be dropped.

In their joint statement, they warned that the case is either a sign of gross incompetence or deliberate pressure on a government critic. Shabunin continued his anti-corruption work while in uniform, publicly opposing the sabotage of reforms and poor governance and defending the independence of Ukraine’s anti-graft institutions, Deutsche Welle reports.

Olena Shcherban, deputy director of Ukraine’s Anti-Corruption Action Center, has called the case an attempt to destroy an organization that has fought for transparency for years. It could also be a broader crackdown on independent activists, a dangerous precedent for democracy under martial law.