PM'S INTERVENTION
Boris Johnson tells TalkTV he had video of Brit soldier Aiden Aslin removed from Facebook after chatting to site’s boss
BORIS Johnson tonight revealed Facebook boss Nick Clegg had agreed to take down a video of British soldier Aiden Aslin being tormented by Russian captors.
Aiden, 28, was taken prisoner during the siege of Mariupol after volunteering to fight alongside the Ukrainian Army.
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His mum Angie Wood had begged the social media giant to remove the video of him being taunted with the death penalty after it was viewed hundreds of thousands of times.
In an exclusive interview with TalkTV on Monday she pleaded: “Facebook hasn’t responded to hundreds of people who’ve reported it.
"It shouldn’t be allowed. It’s a propaganda video.”
And appearing on the new channel last night, the PM revealed Culture Sec Nadine Dorries had personally phoned the ex-Deputy PM turned Facebook spinner Clegg on Tuesday.
READ MORE UKRAINE WAR
He added: “Nick has agreed to take that down.”
The victory came as the PM cautioned that Kremlin tyrant Vladimir Putin still maintained huge public support in Russia.
He said Mad Vlad would not back down in Ukraine because of the “massive Russian backing for what he is doing” and the “apparent obliviousness of the Russian media to whats going on in Ukraine.”
But he did not rule out a prisoner swap Aslin in a deal with Moscow but would not "pre-empt" that happening.
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He told TalkTV: "It is very important to understand that Aiden and other UK nationals who have been fighting for the Ukraine armed forces who get captured are not hostages and they are not to be swapped as though they are terrorists - they are prisoners of war.
"They are, therefore, entitled to rights under the Geneva Convention. They should not be paraded in front of the cameras.
"They should not be made to give hostage videos - that is a breach of their rights as prisoners of war."
Aiden's mum earlier revealed her son had asked her to contact Mr Johnson in hopes of "getting a prison swap done".
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His concerned brother Nathan also called on the Government to get Aiden and fellow Brit soldier Shaun Pinner released.
He said: “You’ve got two British citizens being forced to say whatever the Russians are putting in their mouths at gunpoint.”
Watch TalkTV on Tuesday 26th April on Sky 526, Virgin Media 627, Freeview 237, Freesat 217 or on Fox Nation in the US.
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