Russia captures two Americans in Ukraine

A Russian spokesperson said Alexander J. Drueke, 39, and Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh, 27, were mercenaries fighting in Ukraine and not covered by the Geneva Convention. The treaty protects prisoners of war from torture, unfair trials, and cruel treatment. Earlier this month, Russia sentenced two British citizens and a Moroccan to death after capturing them while fighting in Ukraine.

Who are the soldiers? Drueke and Huynh are from Alabama. Drueke was in the Army Reserve and served in the Middle East before volunteering to teach Ukrainian forces how to use U.S. weapons, his mother said. Huynh served in the U.S. Marine Corps, according to service officials. His fiancé said he went to Ukraine to fight alongside the country’s defense forces. On June 8, both men told their families that they would not be able to communicate with them for a few days and then went missing near the Russia-Ukraine border. There is no official count available, but thousands of Americans are thought to have traveled to Ukraine to aid in the fighting.

Dig deeper: Read Marc LiVecche’s column in WORLD Opinions on the Russian soldier facing a trial for war crimes in Ukraine.