A Ukrainian official in Rwanda: We arrested a number of Iraq who were fighting for Russia

A senior Ukrainian official for the Rudav Media Network confirmed that they had captured a number of Iraqis fighting against Ukraine in the ranks of the Russian military.

"Yes, there are Iraqi fighters within the Russian armed forces. Yes, we've arrested a number of them. We treat them all as prisoners of war. We don't consider any of them mercenaries. The only thing I can't tell you specifically is the number of these Iraq citizens, because of security measures and relations between the two countries".

The Ukrainian official told Rudao Media Network that Iraq officials were allowed to contact their citizens, but did not mention whether any efforts had been made to return them to Iraq.

News reporter from the Rudao Media Network, Namo Abdullah during the press conference

Last year, an Iraqi court in Najaf sentenced a man to life in prison for sending Iraqis to fight for Russia.

The Ukrainian official says they have prisoners from 51 different countries around the world, showing that the war has taken on an international and commercial dimension.