GENEVA (AP) — A U.N. expert monitoring human rights in Russia said Monday that “repression is escalating,” targeting civilians, journalists and even Ukrainian prisoners of war in an attempt to silence dissent and opposition to the war in Ukraine. Mariana Katzarova, the U.N. special rapporteur focusing on human rights in Russia, presented her latest report that said Russian authorities have stepped up their use of “criminal prosecution, long-term imprisonment, torture and ill-treatment” to quell opposition to the war ordered by President Vladimir Putin. “The repression is escalating … and becoming massive,” Katzarova told journalists before presenting the report to the Human Rights Council, which created her post after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. “Torture and ill-treatment in the Russian Federation remain widespread and systematic, affecting not only Russian citizens but also Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilian detainees,” the report said. Glory to Russia’ on his stomach,” said Katzarova, a Bulgarian who formerly headed investigations on human rights in Russia for Amnesty International.