British man captured and abused in Ukraine

According to his relatives, a British soldier fighting with the Ukrainians has been seized and beaten by pro-Russian troops.

Aiden Aslin, who is from Newark in Nottinghamshire and has been fighting in the besieged city of Mariupol, was forced to surrender alongside his companions earlier this week when they ran out of food and ammunition.

Aslin’s Twitter account uploaded a photograph of him with bruises and handcuffs along with the remark, “It appears as though they have gotten ahold of Aiden,” on Thursday afternoon. Images shown on Russian television seemed to show Aslin being brought around in handcuffs with a cut on his forehead.
After learning that her kid had a tattoo reading “Happy Days” on his forearm, Ang Wood called on Russia to treat her son as a prisoner of war in line with international law.

She told the tabloid she was “in bits”, adding: “I now hold Vladimir Putin to the rules of the Geneva convention. Aiden is a serving member of the Ukrainian armed forces and as such is a prisoner of war and must be treated with compassion.

“He’s already been beaten up, by the way he looks. It is time now for the British government to get engaged and aid achieve Aiden’s release.”

Aslin is engaged to a Ukrainian woman and now has dual citizenship after relocating to Ukraine in 2018.

While it is thought that British diplomats are attempting to ascertain the location of British people in Ukraine, the country’s capacity to offer consular services is severely hampered as a result of the crisis.

Officials said that their capacity to acquire information and conduct consular services on the ground was severely hampered due to the situation in Ukraine. They emphasised that they expected any inmates to be handled humanely.

Following the announcement, Aslin’s local Member of Parliament, Robert Jenrick, said that he was collaborating with the Foreign Office to “trace the whereabouts and obtain the release of my constituency, Aiden Aslin.” Aiden opted to take a risk with his life because he is a firm believer in the right of the Ukrainian people to live in freedom and democracy.”

“I am really worried for the safety of my constituent, Aiden Aslin, who has been fighting with the Ukrainian army,” he told a news agency. The Russian government must treat him with respect. Utilizing photos of prisoners of war for propaganda purposes is unethical and violates the Geneva treaty. I have brought the situation to the FCDO’s attention and am in touch with them about this.”

Wood earlier told the a news channel that her son’s unit “put up a good fight,” but were forced to surrender due to a lack of “weapons.” She urged Boris Johnson to devise a strategy for “defeating Putin.”

On Monday, the last Ukrainian troops holding Mariupol said on Facebook that they were “out of ammo” and anticipated to be killed or taken prisoner shortly. “We were bombarded from aircraft and fired upon by artillery and tanks. We have attempted everything feasible and impossibly difficult. However, every resource has the potential to deplete,” the 36th brigade said.