War in Ukraine: Body of British man captured by Russian forces in Ukraine showed signs of 'possible unspeakable torture'

The body of a British man captured by Russian forces in Ukraine showed signs of "possible unspeakable torture”, Ukrainian authorities have claimed.

Paul Urey and another British man, Dylan Healy, were attempting to pass through a check point near the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia in April as they tried to rescue a family of a mother and two children from a nearby village when they were believed to have been taken by Russian forces.

Mr Urey, who has been described by British authorities as an aid worker, was reported to have been found dead in July after being held captive in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) breakaway region of Ukraine.

Ukraine's foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said “Russians” had now returned his body with “signs of possible unspeakable torture”.

Mr Urey was believed to have been working independently, but was connected with charity Presidium Network, based in England.

Mr Urey, 45, from Manchester, is understood to have children. He is understood to have suffered from Type One diabetes, for which he needed insulin, with his mother describing him as being in poor health.

After his death, she said: “Part of me thinks maybe he just, because of how ill he was, maybe he wanted to go and die there doing something.”

Mr Healy recently appeared in a Russian-controlled court in Donetsk, alongside two other British men – John Harding and Andrew Hill – and two other Europeans, accused of charges of mercenarism and “undergoing training to seize power by force”.

Prosecutors allege all five men were members of the Azov Battalion and other military units captured in Mariupol. They could face the death penalty.