Several Russian soldiers participating in the invasion of Ukraine resorted to cannibalism due to food shortages.
Modern.az reports that “The Sunday Times” newspaper published information about this, citing materials from Ukrainian military intelligence, including photographs of about a dozen Russian officers and intercepted audio messages. According to the publication, in at least five incidents, Russian soldiers ate their comrades.
One of the incidents occurred in November 2025 near Mirnograd in Donetsk region. According to the evidence presented, an infantryman with the call sign "Lame" serving in the Russian army killed two fellow soldiers and attempted to eat the leg of one of them. In Telegram correspondence, the unnamed officer informed Vladislav Razikov, deputy commander of the intelligence battalion, about this and sent a photo of the severed leg. The publication writes that the images were checked with special software and no signs of them being fake or edited were found.
An independent military surgeon who examined the photo stated that the injuries did not resemble combat wounds and were likely inflicted with a sharp instrument. In audio messages, the officer referred to the incident as an “incident” and said that the soldier was found trying to chop human flesh in the basement, fired when he was asked to be detained, and was killed. The officer also noted that his soldiers were living on “starvation rations” and that food was severely depleted.
Similar cases are mentioned in other intercepted conversations. Thus, in April last year, a soldier with the call sign “Most” complained to his commander that a comrade was “eating human flesh.” In October 2025, the commander of the 1437th motorized rifle regiment accused a subordinate soldier of the same act and demanded that he stop “eating humans.” In another message, the chief of staff of the 55th motorized rifle brigade issued an order explicitly prohibiting cannibalism, along with alcohol and drugs.
The Ukrainian side also reports that the number of captured Russian soldiers complaining about food shortages is increasing. Bradley Martin, a former US Navy captain and RAND Corporation employee, noted that information about supply problems in the Russian army seems credible and that troop supply is not a priority for the command.
