A senior pro-Putin politician has demanded rebels in the Donetsk People’s Republic go-ahead with the death penalty facing two surrendered British volunteer fighters in Ukraine.
Britain and other Western countries have condemned the threat of execution facing Aiden Aslin, 28, and Shaun Pinner, 48, along with a Moroccan Sadun Brahim, 21, who was tried with them.
All have one month to appeal, and can also seek a pardon from the head of the pro-Putin separatist region, which in intentional paw is part of Ukraine.
A third British detainee Andrew Hill, 35, a father from Plymouth, has also been told to expect the death penalty when his verdict is handed down.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss called it a "sham judgement" and with "absolutely no legitimacy”, while No.10 said it was “deeply concerned” at the failure to treat the men as prisoners of war under the Geneva Convention.
Russian nationalist MP Aleksey Zhuravlyov, deputy chairman of the Russian parliament’s defence committee, went on state TV Rossiya 1 to urge that appeals should be rejected and they should be shot dead.
Then other “scum” and “beasts” - international fighters in Ukraine - will realise they should leave Ukraine now.
“So, the bastards still have another month of life,” said the politician on state TV referring to the Britons convicted of being mercenaries, engaging in terrorism and plotting to overthrow the authorities.
“Let them live, try to appeal the sentence, somehow.
“But I hope it will stay without any changes.
“Then it will be clear to all who are fighting now, like Georgians and other scum, that or you will die out there, beasts
“Or you will be anyway shot by a court decision.
“So you have no options - gather your things and leave quickly.
“You cannot do anything there.”
Russian state TV propagandist anchorman Vladimir Solovyov claimed there was now “panic” in Boris Johnson ’s government over the death sentences since they had no way to exert influence on Moscow and the DPR authorities to spare the men.
“Now there is actually a panic situation in England,” he said.
“The death penalty as an exceptional punishment for those convicted.
“Now begins the hardest moment.
“Liz Truss [UK foreign secretary] screams that it's all illegal, that it's all awful.
“She should resign, because all this blather about 'I will now talk to the Ukrainian authorities', what will it do?
“The Ukrainian government cannot influence in any way.
“Liz Truss cannot talk to the Russian authorities.
“The [British] have completely screwed up relations [with us].
“Boris Johnson and Liz Truss are going to fight to the last Ukrainian.
“Now what are they going to do [about the British men sentenced to death]?
“What are they going to do?”
Solovyov suggested they could face a “firing squad”.
Separately, Channel One in Russia accused Truss of “demagoguery”, reporting that the Geneva Convention did not apply to “mercenaries”.
"The reaction of the convicted men can be seen from their faces - downcast and bewildered," said the state-controlled channel.
"They pleaded guilty including to a charge of training for terrorist activities, but in fact they didn't just train.”
Pinner had “shot at civilians”, according to other captives, said the report.\
However, five supposed witnesses did not attend what in the West has been labelled a “show trial”.
State-owned Rossiya 1 reported that “nobody from the British authorities has been in contact with the republic's leaders or law-enforcement agencies about the fate of the convicted mercenaries”.
Aslin was shown saying ahead of the death sentence: "I would like to apologise to the residents of Donetsk. I hoped that the sentence would be more just, taking into account that I cooperated with the investigation and that I surrendered voluntarily to the Donetsk people's republic.
“I hoped for a different sentence. I shall face divine judgement when the time comes."
There are claims that Moscow wants to use the British men as pawns to seek releases of Putin supporters held by Ukraine.
In late April, Moscow proposed an exchange with Putin’s Ukrainian friend Viktor Medvedchuk, an oligarch who is held by President Volodymyr Zelensky ’s forces.
