MOSCOW, October 7. /TASS/. Polish mercenaries fighting on the side of Ukraine shot unarmed people in Sudzha in front of civilians, the Russian Defense Ministry reported.

"Residents of the town of Sudzha tell about the atrocities of the Ukrainian military in the border area of the Kursk Region. Eyewitnesses confirm the large presence of Poles in the area," the statement said.

Refugee Dmitry said in a video provided by the Defense Ministry that foreign mercenaries gathered a crowd of civilians and shot unarmed people. "They gathered all the old people, young people, and shot them in front of everyone. They were Poles. They shot them all," he said. Dmitry also pointed out that during the shooting, two people managed to escape in the ensuing chaos and made their way through the marshes toward Lgov.

Another refugee named Sergey said that in Sudzha he left his passport at home and two Ukrainian fighters took him to get the document. According to the resident, they had unusual speech, one of them spoke with an obvious Baltic accent, and both were armed with American weapons.

"When I reached for the box with the documents, one of them hit me on the back of the head with a buttstock, and the other one hit me in the leg, and they ordered me to sit down. They tore out the box and scattered its contents around the room," Sergey said.

The Ukrainian military were called on the radio, and Sergey managed to hide in a basement, where he stayed until nightfall. While in the basement, he heard the Ukrainian troops returning to the house, smashing dishes and cupboards in search of valuables. During the night he managed to escape.