RIA Novosti presented Kyrylo Budanov’s remarks as an admission that Ukraine had numerous “torture basements.” In his explanation, however, “many” referred to buildings rented to accommodate mobilized servicemen temporarily, not to alleged torture sites.
One of the buildings discussed was a private house in Petropavlivska Borshchahivka in the Kyiv region. Ukraine’s National Guard said it had rented the property to accommodate servicemen, including four people detained for leaving their unit without authorization.
Budanov nevertheless acknowledged the possibility that mobilized personnel had been mistreated and called for an investigation. Correcting the misquotation does not resolve allegations of possible abuse at the building.
Witnesses described bruises on servicemen who had been at the building. Reports also mentioned a local 14-year-old boy, who had climbed over the fence, was not among the detained servicemen and left with his older sister without being hospitalized. The cause of his injuries has not been established.