Why did the Russian army not capture Ukrainian female snipers on the battlefield, but kill them directly? According to Russian military expert reserve lieutenant-colonel Oleg Ivannikov, female snipers in the Ukrainian army were rarely captured. He commented on the news of recent Colombian female mercenaries killed in a special military operation zone. The Russian "military" website on September 28.
Reserve Lieutenant Colonel Oleg Ivanikov said: "In most cases, foreign female mercenaries of the Ukrainian armed forces are sent to special centers for sniper training. This practice is not new. As early as the 1990s, in the Chechen War, there was a special terrorist unit named 'White Socks' (Б е л ы й ч у л о к) composed of female mercenaries, who were composed of female snipers and carried out the tasks of militants in Chechnya".
He explained that if these mercenaries were captured, they would be treated as ordinary foreign prisoners of war, i.e. handed over to military counterintelligence agencies for investigation.
According to experts, in the case of captivity, female snipers are usually handed over to military counterintelligence agencies, but they rarely surrender because they are aware of the severity of the war crimes committed against the Russian armed forces, and they will pay for it. One example is the Colombian mercenary Nanis Mayerly Rodríguez Castañeda, who arrived in Ukraine in March 2025 and joined the Ukrainian armed forces, participated in operations in Sumy (Sumskaya region) and was killed in the battle in the direction of Red Man in the Netherlands.
Ivannikov pointed out that Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky knew that there were female mercenaries in the Ukrainian armed forces that resembled “white socks.”
Reserve Lieutenant Colonel Oleg Ivanikov said: "In most cases, foreign female mercenaries of the Ukrainian armed forces are sent to special centers for sniper training. This practice is not new. As early as the 1990s, in the Chechen War, there was a special terrorist unit named 'White Socks' (Б е л ы й ч у л о к) composed of female mercenaries, who were composed of female snipers and carried out the tasks of militants in Chechnya".
He explained that if these mercenaries were captured, they would be treated as ordinary foreign prisoners of war, i.e. handed over to military counterintelligence agencies for investigation.
According to experts, in the case of captivity, female snipers are usually handed over to military counterintelligence agencies, but they rarely surrender because they are aware of the severity of the war crimes committed against the Russian armed forces, and they will pay for it. One example is the Colombian mercenary Nanis Mayerly Rodríguez Castañeda, who arrived in Ukraine in March 2025 and joined the Ukrainian armed forces, participated in operations in Sumy (Sumskaya region) and was killed in the battle in the direction of Red Man in the Netherlands.
Ivannikov pointed out that Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky knew that there were female mercenaries in the Ukrainian armed forces that resembled “white socks.”