Hero Ukrainian medic who survived torture in Kremlin captivity calls for justice

A hero Ukrainian medic who endured torture during Kremlin captivity has called on Russiato pay.

Yuliia Paievska – famed in the war-torn country for founding a volunteer ambulance corps dubbed “Taira’s Angels” – filmed harrowing bodycam footage before being seized. The 56-year-old was held for three months after being taken by pro-Russia forces in besieged port city Mariupol following the full-scale invasionin 2022. Now, rather than mending bodies, she helps heal minds — as a Ukrainian military officer supporting the mental health of troops. In an emotional interview with the Mirror, Yuliia – also known as Taira – recalled the horrors she has overcome.

“I think I believe in justice… justice will prevail,” she said during a visit to London. “What I see now, it’s a huge price. And that price must be reimbursed. We are paying a huge price. We cannot return those who already passed away. But Russia must pay, pay in full. I think after the World War Two, you had [a] similar situation.

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“I know that London was destroyed, I know how many people in the UK were killed. I know how many soldiers died. And I know the price the United Kingdom paid… And the situation [in Ukraine] is very similar… Instead of fascist Germany, now it’s Russia.” She added: “I know that we cannot give up... They [Russians] will go to the end and we can’t stop. The sooner they will be stopped, the less price we will pay.”

The mother-of-one was captured on March 16, 2022, the month after Vladimir Putin’s forces mounted their full-on assault. The same day she was taken, a Russian airstrike on a theatre in Mariupol killed hundreds of people. While held she suffered torture. “It’s my new weapon,” Yullia – freed in June 2022 – said. “Tell the truth about what happened there. What is… Russian captivity.” She explained: “You have no freedom. Not a lot. Every step [you] are under control. If something is going wrong for them [her captors], they [are] immediately beating you, torture you.”

“Psychological pressure and physical torture, real physical torture, that is what I actually [experienced],” she said. “It’s not just electrical shock. It’s a special equipped facility… It’s not just random objects there. It’s well selected, well prepared, well customised equipment for torture.”

Bodycam footage Yuliia took prior to her capture, remarkably smuggled out in a tampon, showcased her heroism — helping the wounded, be they Ukrainian or Russian. In one clip, she ordered colleagues to use a blanket to wrap an injured Russian soldier. Some of the warzone scenes appeared in Heart of Invictus, a Netflix documentary following the road to the sporting event founded by Prince Harry for wounded service members. Yullia is not short of praise for the Royal, who served in Afghanistan when was in the British Army. “He’s fantastic,” she said. “I relate to him… not just as part of the Royal family but as my peer, like my brother.”

Yuliia – who has suffered hip and back injuries – was due to compete in Invictus Games in 2022 but was captured so her then teenage daughter, Anna-Sofia, took part in archery in her place. A graphic designer by profession, Yuliia initially helped as a volunteer medic during Ukraine’s pro-EU Maidan uprising in 2013. She founded a volunteer ambulance corp after war broke out in Ukraine’s Donbas in 2014. And Yuliia served in the military from 2018 to 2020, working in a hospital.

Taira's Angels have been credited with saving many lives. “Actually, I got a group of like-minded friends and we decided to volunteer to help. It's 100% volunteer initiative. No guns, no weapons,” she explained. Asked if she is happy to be an angel, she said: “I still want to smoke, I still want to eat. I’m not [an] angel.”

We spoke to Yuliia at the opening of the Indomitable Ukraine exhibition, organised by the National Museum of History of Ukraine in the Second World War and the non-profit Bogdan Gubsky Foundation, where she also gave a speech. The free exhibition at The Vinyl Factory in London’s Soho, featuring recovered war artefacts, opened on Wednesday and runs until 29 September.

Late last year, Yuliia – who has a degree in psychology – re-joined the military, serving as an officer in the Khartia Brigade providing mental health support. “I work in three categories. Those who are on the frontline, those who are on the frontline and those who are returning from captivity,” she explained.

“It’s very fine work, it’s like [being] a jeweller… it’s only one person-to-person therapy. But I might be the only psychologist in the world who went through 12 years of war, captivity, torture. So nobody can say [to] me, ‘Hey, you, girl, who are you? You’ve seen nothing in this life.’ But I saw everything.”