A newly released intercepted conversation by Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR) suggests Russian commanders ordered troops to cut off the heads of dead soldiers and bring them back with identification documents instead of evacuating full bodies from the battlefield, exposing what Ukrainian intelligence described as a pattern of extreme abuse inside Russian ranks.
“He was ordered, basically, to bring the head because it is hard to carry the bodies out... cut off the head, bring the head together with the documents,” one Russian serviceman says in the recording released by HUR.
The conversation indicates that body evacuation was treated as an operational burden, with commanders allegedly prioritizing identification over recovery of remains.
Another serviceman describes internal outrage after the decapitation became known within the unit.
“The battalion commander made it clear and gave the order that only we carry out our own, damn it, and screw that ‘twelve’... You should have heard it, damn it, my ears curled into a tube when he found out that, damn it, our guy’s head had been cut off,” the soldier says, referring to the 12th Guards Tank Regiment.
The intercepted exchange also suggests soldiers were instructed to conceal such information even from their own command channels.
“‘Sugrob,’ “Rudniku,” I’ll text you privately, I’ll text you privately, tell me that kind of information privately, damn it, our battalion commander is listening,” another voice says in the recording.
Other recently intercepted calls have revealed worsening conditions for the Russian military.
One soldier complained of a lack of basic supplies, which led to Russian troops dying on supply runs, while another admitted that various personnel – including cooks – were being used as infantry during frontal assaults.
In 2023, Kyiv Post interviewed a woman working as a “professional eavesdropper,” listening in on Russian communications intercepted by Ukrainian intelligence. “Maria” – not her real name – said that the “insane” things heard in intercepted calls are, in fact, real despite their often outrageous nature.
“They all are real even though they might seem insane. Sometimes I can’t believe the words I’m hearing myself, but we have what we have,” she said.
Kyiv Post regularly reports on intercepted Russian communications. Some of the most shocking examples include claims of cannibalism, Russian soldiers driving tanks into the countryside in search of vodka, and the chaotic aftermath of the Russian military’s loss of Starlink access.
Kyiv Post regularly reposts some of the most revealing and shocking intercepted conversations:
‘A Monster, a Fascist’: Intercept Shows Russians Panicking Over Budanov’s Appointment
‘Gas Canisters Not Issued, F**k’: Russian Soldiers Crowdfund for Basics, Die on Supply Runs
‘Three Holes in His Leg and Shrapnel in His Neck’ - Just 2 Russians Survived ‘Meat Assault’
Russian Woman Says: ‘Trump Will Lead the Horned One,’ Jews Will Rule the World
‘Brelok F**king Ate Him’: Intercept Reveals Russian Cannibal Soldier
‘They Drive Tanks for Vodka’ – Intercept Reveals Drunk Russian Troops Terrorizing Border Village
‘We Need to Take Odesa’ – Russian Woman Cites Fake ‘Biolabs’ to Justify Mykolaiv Attacks