Ukraine is accusing Russia of abducting a second mayor within days, in new phase of invasion

While at least two other Ukrainian officials cited Matveev’s kidnapping by Russian forces, the reports could not immediately be independently verified by The Washington Post.

The Dniprorudne mayor’s alleged abduction comes days after the mayor of the southern port of Melitopol was reportedly taken by Russian troops, sparking large-scale protests there.

They signal the Russian invasion could enter a new phase, one a British lawmaker warned would be marked by “a campaign of civilian abductions” designed to “break the spirit of the people of Ukraine.”

On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russian forces had captured the mayor of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov.

Videos circulated by Ukrainian officials appeared to show Fedorov being led away by Russian soldiers on Friday with what resembled a hood over his head. Zelensky, who called the alleged abduction “simple terrorism,” warned it is the latest of a number of actions against mayors across the country who do not cooperate with the Russian forces occupying their cities and towns.

With a second mayor now apparently abducted, Olexandr Starukh, the regional governor of Zaporizhzhia, said Sunday on Facebook that “war crimes are becoming systemic.” He said Matveev “has been kidnapped.” Lesia Vasylenko, a Ukrainian lawmaker, called the alleged kidnapping a “terrorist” tactic.

Alicia Kearns, a member of the British Parliament, tweeted that Matveev was kidnapped as part of Russia’s “campaign of civilian abductions.” The Conservative lawmaker accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of abducting politicians to coerce them into supporting his invasion of Ukraine.

Zelensky said in an address Saturday that Russian forces have “switched to a new stage of terror, when they are trying to physically eliminate representatives of the legitimate local Ukrainian authorities.” He said that Russian forces’ capture of Fedorov was “a crime against democracy.”

The Ukrainian president said democratic countries would equate Russia’s actions with those “of ISIS terrorists,” and asked for “guarantees of full security to all heads of communities across the country.”

Crowds gathered in Melitopol on Saturday to demand Fedorov’s release.

Thousands protest in Melitopol after Russian forces reportedly abduct mayor with a hood over his head

Melitopol, with a population of about 150,000, has been under Russian control for two weeks. Despite the Russian occupation of the city, Fedorov, who is ethnically Russian, had encouraged recent demonstrations in Melitopol against the invasion.

Russia has accused Fedorov of “terrorist activities,” according to the Associated Press. The prosecutor’s office of the Luhansk People’s Republic, a Moscow-backed rebel region in eastern Ukraine, has claimed without presenting evidence that Fedorov was financing the nationalist militia Right Sector to “commit terrorist crimes against Donbas civilians.”

The mayor’s alleged abduction prompted roughly 2,000 people on Saturday to protest outside the city hall building occupied by Russian forces, Zelensky said. Bundled-up against the cold, protesters in Melitopol chanted for Fedorov’s release. “Bring back the mayor!” they said. “Freedom to the mayor!”