THE RUSSIAN PROSECUTOR-GENERAL’S Office has announced it is opening a preliminary probe into footage purporting to show the beheading of a Ukrainian prisoner of war.

The emergence of the disturbing footage, which has not been independently verified, sparked fury in Ukraine yesterday with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying on Twitter that the video depicts Russia “as it is”.

“In order to assess the reliability of these materials and make an appropriate decision, they were sent to the investigating authorities to organise a probe,” the office said in a statement.

It’s an unusual step as in most cases Russia will outright deny accusations of war crimes.

The video, which lasts one minute 40 seconds, shows a masked man in camouflage decapitating another man in uniform. After the screams stop, other voices are heard encouraging the attacker in Russian.

After the man is decapitated, a voice is heard saying that the head should be sent “to the commander”.

The video spread online and drew outrage from officials in Kyiv. Yesterday, Ukraine launched its own investigation into the video.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters yesterday that “the authenticity of this horrible footage needs to be verified”.

Wagner paramilitary group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin today denied accusations from a Russian NGO and a Wagner deserter that the executioners were from his group.

“This is complete nonsense, it does not correspond to reality,” Prigozhin said.

Since Russia’s forces invaded in Feburary 2022, they have committed widespread abuses and alleged war crimes, according to the United Nations.

Ukraine has repeatedly accused Russia of targeting of civilian structures and equipment in its strike. Images of hundreds of dead civilians in the streets and in mass graves in Bucha emerged after Russian forces withdrew from the city horrified the world.

The International Criminal Court recently issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for war crimes, accusing him of personal responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine.

The Kremlin denies it has committed war crimes or that it has targeted civilians.

Ukrainian troops have also been accused of abuses, and last year Kyiv said it would investigate video circulating online that Moscow alleged showed Ukrainian forces killing Russian troops who may have been trying to surrender.

Zelenksyy said the violence in the latest video would not be forgotten, and that Russian forces would be held responsible.

© AFP 2023 - Additional Reporting by Muiris O’Cearbhaill