Protection of Prisoners of War under Islamic Law and International Humanitarian Law: Russia-Ukraine Conflict
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Abstract
The Russia-Ukraine conflict since February 2022 has produced a large-scale prisoner-of-war crisis and reports of torture, extrajudicial executions, and inhumane detention conditions. This study analyzes prisoner-of-war protection under Islamic law and International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and applies both frameworks to assess treatment in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. It employs normative legal research using statutory, conceptual, case, and Islamic legal approaches, drawing on primary legal sources, academic literature, and investigative reports from international institutions. The findings show strong convergence between Islamic law and IHL on humane treatment, the prohibition of transgression, and the prohibition of reprisals, despite differences in epistemological foundations and normative detail. The case analysis indicates that alleged systematic torture of Ukrainian prisoners, the Olenivka incident, and other violations primarily reflect weak enforcement, accountability, and access to independent monitoring rather than an absence of legal norms. The study recommends stronger ICRC access and cross-tradition legal dialogue to reinforce compliance with prisoner-of-war protection norms.
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