Over the past six months, judges with Russia’s 2nd Western District Military Court have handed down sentences to184 soldiers captured during the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ operation in the Kursk region, according to a tally by Mediazona.
Journalists from the outlet noted that all of the convictions were issued under the same provision of Russia’s Criminal Code: carrying out a terrorist act by a group of individuals resulting in grave consequences (Article 205, Part 2). Since November 2024, the court has adjudicated 159 such cases, with a total of 267 defendants.
According to Mediazona, Russia’s Chief Military Prosecutor’s Office has been reporting new convictions in similar cases almost daily.
Ukrainian forces entered Russia’s Kursk region in August 2024, capturing dozens of settlements. Seven months later, in March 2025, Russian troops launched a counteroffensive that largely retook the border areas. On April 26, Russian Army General Staff Chief Valery Gerasimov announced the full liberation of the region — though, as Meduza previously reported, Ukrainian forces remained on Russian territory.
In April 2025, the state-run news agency TASS reported, citing sources in the security forces, that more than 500 Ukrainian soldiers had been taken prisoner in the Kursk region.