Business Standard

Russian forces capture British mercenary fighting with Ukraine: RIA

It was not clear when the video was filmed. The British Foreign Office did not immediately respond to a Reuters' request for comment on the reports outside office hours

russian army

Russian border region of Kursk in August, still control parts of it. (Photo: Representative/ Reuters)

Reuters

Listen to This Article

Russian forces captured a British mercenary fighting with the Ukrainian army in Russia's Kursk region, which is still partially controlled by Kyiv forces, a security source told Russia's RIA state news agency. 
"A mercenary from Great Britain, who called himself James Scott Rhys Anderson, was captured. He is now giving evidence," the Russian source told RIA in remarks published on Sunday. 
In a video posted on unofficial pro-war Russian Telegram channels on Sunday, a young bearded man wearing military clothing with what appears to be his hands tied in the back, says in English that his name is James Scott Rhys Anderson and that he formerly served in the British Army. 
 
Reuters could not independently verify the video and the RIA and other media reports. 
It was not clear when the video was filmed. The British Foreign Office did not immediately respond to a Reuters' request for comment on the reports outside office hours. 
The BBC reported earlier that the Foreign Office said it was "supporting the family of a British man following reports of his detention". 
Ukraine forces, which staged a surprise incursion in the Russian border region of Kursk in August, still control parts of it.  However, Kyiv said over the weekend that it has since lost over 40 per cent of the territory that it had captured, as Russian forces have mounted waves of counter-assaults. 
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Don't miss the most important news and views of the day. Get them on our Telegram channel

First Published: Nov 25 2024 | 9:24 AM IST

Explore News