Overview
- Ukraine’s 63rd Mechanised Brigade released a video of a man identifying himself as 22-year-old Majoti Sahil Mohamed Hussein from Morbi, Gujarat, saying he laid down arms and surrendered.
- In the recording, he says he was sentenced to seven years in a Russian prison on drug charges, signed a military contract to avoid jail, received about 16 days of training, and was sent to the front on October 1.
- He states he surrendered after three days at the front, placing his rifle down near a Ukrainian position, and says he does not want to return to Russia.
- India’s Ministry of External Affairs and the embassy in Kyiv say they are ascertaining the veracity of the claim and have not received formal communication from Ukrainian authorities.
- Gujarat Police say preliminary checks indicate he is a Morbi resident who went to Russia to study, as India continues pressing Moscow to release nationals recruited into its forces, a group officially tallied at over 150 with at least 12 deaths, 96 discharges and 16 missing.