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"The Rock" has responded to journalists’ reports of seven further fatalities in the regiment

"The Rock" has responded to journalists’ reports of seven further fatalities in the regiment

08 July 2026, 13:16

"The Rock" has responded to journalists’ reports of seven further fatalities in the regiment

The 425th Separate Assault Regiment ‘Skelya’ has commented on a report by ‘Babel’ regarding seven further conscripts who were killed during training exercises with the regiment. They say they are cooperating with law enforcement agencies and are striving to “reduce to zero” non-combat casualties.

This is stated in the regiment’s Facebook post.

Following the publication of an investigation into the ‘Skelya’ assault regiment, in which ‘Babel’ reported 25 deaths among conscripts during basic military training from late autumn 2025 to spring 2026, relatives and friends of other recruits who died during basic military training contacted the editorial team.

Six new incidents occurred during that same six-month period, and one took place last summer. Most of the conscripts died after spending less than a month in the regiment.

At the same time, the regiment stated that, according to their records, three of the servicemen mentioned died in hospital, another three died of natural causes, and the seventh soldier committed suicide. They called for “each case to be considered separately — on the basis of irrefutable facts, documents and impartial testimony”.

“Skelya” assured that it is cooperating effectively with law enforcement agencies and considers the handover of materials by media representatives to investigators to be constructive.

Meanwhile, alongside the official investigation, “The Rock” continues to make “genuine efforts to reduce any non-combat losses to zero”. To this end, they say, the command is considering “a comprehensive plan to change its approach to working with conscripts and communicating with their families”.

Furthermore, the 425th Special Forces Battalion denied anyconnection between *Babel*’s investigations and the searches carried out at the home of Oleksiy Babenko, a shareholder in the publication and owner of the drone manufacturer VYRIY INDUSTRIES, in connection with the case concerning inflated drone prices.

“We consider any assumptions regarding our involvement in exerting pressure on independent Ukrainian media to be incorrect. Our unit has only one task — to systematically, professionally and effectively neutralise Russian threats in at least 13 areas,” the regiment added.

Investigation

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A secondary school headteacher from the Kherson region was called up whilst on his way to the Ministry of Education and Science: the ombudsman has launched an investigation

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