Russian troops operated a torture chamber in the Belarusian town of Naroulia during the spring of 2022, detaining Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilians. This revelation comes from a report by the Belarusian Investigative Center (BIC), published on November 28.
The facility was allegedly located on state-owned property near the border with Ukraine and was used to detain people captured during Russia’s early invasion of Kyiv Oblast.
Human rights activists and former prisoners described the camp as a place of extreme cruelty.
“They beat civilians really hard. You could hear constant screaming,” said Bohdan Lysenko, a Ukrainian soldier captured and brought to Naroulia in March 2022.
Lawyer Yulia Polekhina, working with the Sich human rights group, confirmed that torture occurred at the site.
The camp was reportedly set up on the premises of Pripyatski Alyans, a Belarusian state-owned company that provides catering and procurement services for local institutions. The company has declined to comment, directing inquiries to local authorities.
Possible Geneva Convention Violations
According to the Kyiv Independent, the Reckoning Project, a Ukrainian-American organization documenting human rights violations, has stated that the actions of Russian forces at Naroulia likely breached the Geneva Conventions.
These international laws prohibit the forced displacement of civilians and the detention of military personnel and civilians in the same facility.
Russian troops reportedly remained at the camp until May 2022.
The use of torture chambers has been a recurring tactic by Russian forces throughout the war. Similar facilities have been documented in occupied areas of Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson oblasts.
Belarus, under dictator Alexander Lukashenko, played a significant role in supporting Russia’s war efforts.
Belarusian territory was used to launch missile strikes against Ukraine, host Russian troops, and supply weapons to the Kremlin. Belarus has also been implicated in the abduction of Ukrainian children from Russian-occupied territories.
