Four Russian soldiers have described severe brutality within their own ranks during the war in Ukraine, including alleged executions of troops who refused orders. In a BBC documentary, two men said they witnessed commanders shoot soldiers at close range for declining to join assaults described as near-suicidal. One claimed he saw about 20 bodies of comrades executed by fellow troops, a practice reportedly referred to in slang as being ‘zeroed’. Another said he was tortured, electrocuted and humiliated after refusing deployment, and that others were forced into repeated, deadly attacks. The men, now in hiding, spoke from an undisclosed location. Moscow has not released official casualty figures (other sources estimate more than a million) and says allegations of misconduct are investigated, insisting its forces act ‘with utmost restraint’. The accounts could not be independently verified, but they add to growing claims about harsh discipline and heavy losses within Russian units.