Direct proof of use
Human Rights Watch reported that 9M27K3 Uragan rockets carrying PFM-series anti-personnel mines were apparently fired into Russian-occupied areas near Russian military facilities in and around Izium in 2022. Its researchers interviewed witnesses, victims, first responders, doctors, and deminers in the Izium district from September 19 to October 9, and documented PFM mine use in nine areas in and around the city.
The field investigation found physical evidence in seven of those nine areas, including unexploded mines, mine remnants, and metal rocket cassettes. In the Izium area, Human Rights Watch also found Uragan-series rocket motor sections capable of carrying submunitions and PFM mines in cassettes, while noting that repeated rocket fire and demining operations prevented matching every motor or carrier section to a specific attack.
Sources: Ukraine: Banned Landmines Harm Civilians
Timeline
Human Rights Watch dated reported or documented PFM mine appearances around Izium from late April through September 10, 2022, including Kapytolivka east of Izium, Izium Central Hospital, southern Izium, northern parts of the Right Bank, the area south of Shakespeare Street, and the neighborhood around School No. 6.
Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor later summarized the case as credible information that Ukrainian government forces used anti-personnel mines in and around Izium while the city was under Russian control. Its Ukraine profile also cited the March 2023 report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, which found instances where Ukrainian armed forces likely used rocket-delivered anti-personnel mines in Izium city from March to September 2022.
Sources: Ukraine: Banned Landmines Harm Civilians, Ukraine Mine Ban Policy
Narrative
In this conflict record, the documented role of the 9M27K3 is remote area denial by rocket delivery of PFM-series mines. The munition is not described in the sources as a direct-fire battlefield weapon; its relevance is the delivery of many small pressure-activated mines into areas around Izium during the Russian occupation of the city.
Human Rights Watch verified 11 civilian casualties from PFM mines in and around Izium and reported hospital accounts of many more mine-related traumatic amputations through late September and October 2022. The organization said it documented no PFM mine use in the area after September 10, when Russian forces withdrew, but civilians continued to be injured by mines left in contaminated areas.
The Monitor profile separates this Izium case from broader landmine contamination in Ukraine. It notes extensive Russian anti-personnel mine use since the February 2022 full-scale invasion, while treating the Izium 9M27K3/PFM case as a distinct allegation and investigation involving Ukrainian forces.
Sources: Ukraine: Banned Landmines Harm Civilians, Ukraine Mine Ban Policy
