Scandal surrounding the Hospitallers: Zinkevich responds to accusations regarding donations

In recent days, the media and social networks have been actively discussing the activities of the volunteer medical battalion "Hospitaliers". The reason for this was accusations of non-transparent use of funds collected for the needs of volunteers and combat medics.

Journalist Olga Khudetska drew attention to the lack of reporting on the use of donations. As an example, she cited a large fundraiser for 20 million hryvnia, which began in August 2025 after the battalion's previous base was destroyed by a Russian strike on Pavlohrad. The funds were collected to set up a new base for the unit.

Social media also drew attention to another fundraiser – for ammunition. According to users, funds were collected simultaneously into two accounts: the account of the Hospitaliers fund and the personal "bank" of battalion commander Yana Zinkevich. Subsequently, the link to one of the banks, according to users, disappeared.

One of the participants in the discussion also stated that small amounts were allegedly regularly withdrawn from some of the accounts as soon as they accumulated between 10,000 and 20,000 hryvnia.

Separately, Khudetska noted that at least 14 legal entities of various forms had been created to support the battalion's activities. According to her, some of them are involved in commercial activities as well as public ones. The journalist also claims that a significant part of these structures are managed or owned by relatives of one person – the founders include parents, father-in-law, husband or other relatives.

Veteran Oleg Symoroz responded to the discussion of the situation. He called it another story that could undermine trust in the volunteer movement.

“I hope that now the MP who regularly collected money with photos from stabilisation points will communicate with the public in the same way and not pretend that nothing is happening,” he wrote.

Yana Zinkevich, commander of the Hospitaliers battalion, responded to the accusations and stated that reports on the use of funds were indeed not always published in full due to the heavy operational load and complex logistics of the unit's work.

According to her, the team is currently preparing a consolidated financial report, but the work is progressing more slowly, in particular due to the loss of the base in Pavlohrad.

Zinkevych reported that a new base for the battalion has already been set up. According to her, the facility covers an area of about 6,000 square metres. Replacing 150 windows alone cost approximately 2 million hryvnias.

She also stated that $561,680 was paid for the base, in addition to taxes and notary fees. Part of the funds for the setup had to be borrowed.

In an interview with Radio NV, Zinkevych explained the situation with two banks for collecting ammunition. According to her, the fund and she personally opened banks for the same amount in order to collect the necessary funds faster.

According to this scheme, each time one of them paid for ammunition worth approximately 500,000 hryvnias, both sides reduced the amount of the collection. She reported that she had already made one such payment.

Zinkevych explained that ammunition is purchased in advance so that in the event of a new escalation of the war, it would be possible to quickly equip up to 300 people. According to her, the crews of the "Hospitallers" usually consist of three or four people.

The unit commander also stressed that the battalion is significantly different from charitable foundations, which only purchase equipment and transfer it to the military. According to her, the Hospitallers actually provide their own combat medical unit, which works on the front line every day.

Zinkevych recalled that the unit was created in 2014. According to her, during this time, the battalion has evacuated more than 42,000 wounded. On average, every month, the medics of the Hospitallers evacuate about 1,000–1,100 wounded.

During the full-scale invasion in 2022, up to 50-60 battalion crews worked simultaneously. Now there are fewer of them, but the team is preparing for a possible increase in workload.

The commander also commented on allegations regarding cryptocurrency wallets, from which approximately $210,000 in donations were allegedly withdrawn. According to her, the team checked the information and found no evidence of cryptocurrency wallets being removed from the site or funds disappearing.

She stressed that some of the battalion's expenses cannot be fully disclosed for security reasons. According to her, this practice is also used in other military units, as disclosure of information about suppliers could pose risks to defence capabilities.

Zinkevych said that she plans to publish personal financial reports for two bank cards – PrivatBank and Monobank – in the near future. At the same time, the Hospitaliers fund is preparing a separate financial report.

According to her, the fund has only four employees, so preparing the report takes time. The team plans to publish a report for the last quarter of 2025 in the near future, followed by a full report for the whole of 2025.

Zinkevych also announced a press conference and said she was ready to answer questions from journalists.

The commander emphasised that she is officially registered as a volunteer and reports to the tax authorities every year. In addition, as a member of parliament, she submits declarations to the National Agency for Corruption Prevention (NAZK).

She also recalled that in 2021, she underwent a full audit by the NACP, which lasted about six months. According to her, no violations were found at that time.

Zinkevych stated that she had contacted journalist Olga Khudetska and thanked her for her attention to the issue, noting that such situations can help make the organisation's work more transparent.

At the same time, she suggested that part of the information attack could be related to a conflict with a former volunteer of the unit.

Earlier, the battalion was already at the centre of a scandal involving former volunteer Anna Skolbushevskaya, nicknamed Nyav, who was accused of embezzling donations.