Russian troops have described the harrowing moments they saw their fellow soldiers executed for refusing to obey orders.
The men report being tortured for declining to take part in assaults they describe as verging on suicide missions in Ukraine in a new BBC documentary, The Zero Line: Inside Russia’s War.
As the war enters its fifth year, the UK Ministry of Defence estimates that 1.2 million Russian troops have been killed or injured.
Dima, a 34-year-old father and former dishwasher repairman, said he witnessed his comrades executed on the order of a highly decorated commander and saw the bodies of 20 others lying in a pit after being “zeroed”. The term is Russian slang for executing one of your own.
“I see it – just two metres, three metres. Just murders, just click, clack, bang. It’s not a drama, it’s not a movie, it’s real life,” he said.
He said the men were all ex-convicts and had their bank cards taken off them before they were killed. Dima, who worked as a paramedic because he did not want to kill anyone, said he had spoken to several of the men.
Dima calls his commander, Alexei Ksenofontov, a “butcher”. Ksenofontov was awarded the Gold Star, the highest state medal, and made a “Hero of Russia” in 2024, but has been denounced by the families of men who died in his unit.
They have called on Russian president Vladimir Putin to look into allegations of brutality under his command. He shows a social media video of family members crying that their loved ones had been “slaughtered” and sent to their death “armed with only machine guns and shovels”.
The actions are carried out against men who refuse to obey orders, including being sent to the frontline as part of a “meat storm”. The tactic is part of Russia’s “meat grinder” strategy, sending waves of men to wear down Ukrainian forces.
“I saw them [commanders] send wave after wave, throwing men like meat at the Ukrainians, so they run out of ammo and drones and another wave can reach their objective,” said Denis, another former soldier.
Dima witnessed a “meat storm”, saying: “You send three guys, then another three. It didn’t work out, send 10. It didn’t work out with 10, send 50. Eventually, you will break through. That’s the logic of the military.
“We had 200 dead in three days. On our regiment’s first meat storm, they broke us; our regiment was destroyed in just three days.”
Ilya, 35, who worked in a command post, said his job was to identify and count the dead soldiers. He provided the BBC with a detailed list of 79 others he was mobilised with, of which he is the only surviving member.
He personally witnessed four people being shot at point-blank range by a commander after they fled the front line and refused to return.
“The saddest thing is that I knew them. I remember one of them screaming ‘Don’t shoot, I’ll do anything!’ but he [the commander] zeroed them anyway,” he said.
He describes being tortured and urinated on while others were starved and forced into missions unarmed. Before the war, he taught children with special needs and autism in Kungur, in the Ural mountains.
Dima, who was eventually promoted to officer, also says he was tortured for 72 days, including with electric shocks, for refusing to send his men on a meat storm.
“Just torture only, every day with a stone face. No emotions, it’s crazy,” he described.
The Russian government says its armed forces “operate with utmost restraint, as far as possible under the conditions of a high-intensity conflict, treating their personnel with maximum care”.
“Information regarding alleged violations and crimes is duly investigated,” it added.
“We are unable to independently verify the accuracy or authenticity of the information you have provided.”
