Two British citizens and a Moroccan national were sentenced to death Thursday for fighting to defend Ukraine, in proceedings that critics blasted as a “show trial” held by pro-Kremlin rebels.
The three captured fighters — Aiden Aslin, Shaun Pinner and Saaudun Brahim — were found guilty of working toward a violent overthrow of power, an offense punishable by death in the court in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic.
All three were also convicted of mercenary activities and terrorism.
Pro-Russian officials in the breakaway territory claimed the men’s actions had “led to the deaths and injury of civilians, as well as damage to civilian and social infrastructure.”
Russia’s state news agency RIA Novosti reported that the condemned prisoners are set to face a firing squad. They have a month to appeal the sentences, which could be replaced with 25-year prison terms.
The Moscow-backed separatists argued that the foreign fighters were “mercenaries” not entitled to the usual protections afforded prisoners of war under the Geneva Conventions.
Relatives of Aslin and Pinner had argued that the men, who are both Brits said to have lived in Ukraine since 2018, were long-time members of the Ukrainian military, serving in the Marines. Aslin also reportedly has Ukrainian citizenship.
British Foreign Secretary Luz Truss condemned the sentencing as a “sham judgment with absolutely no legitimacy.” Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesman Jamie Davies said that under the Geneva Conventions, POWs are entitled to immunity as combatants.
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleh Nikolenko slammed the trial as legally invalid, saying, “Such show trials put the interests of propaganda above the law and morality.”
The three men fought alongside Ukrainian troops. Pinner, 48, and Aslin, 28, surrendered to enemy forces in the southern port of Mariupol in mid-April, while Brahim did so in mid-March in the eastern city of Volnovakha.
Aslin and Pinner were later paraded on Russian TV, with the former looking bloodied and injured. The UK citizens asked to be freed in exchange for a Ukrainian ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin who had been detained.
A photo taken of Aslin in a courtroom cage Wednesday showed the 28-year-old appearing pale and thin, with dark circles under his eyes and a scar in the middle of his forehead.
The Russian military has argued that foreign mercenaries fighting on Ukraine’s side are not combatants and should expect a long prison term, at best, if captured. Another British fighter captured by the pro-Russian forces, Andrew Hill, is awaiting trial.
With Post Wires
