The UN mission declared the responsibility of “both sides” of the war for the violation of human rights in Ukraine, in particular, the execution of prisoners of war by the Russian and Ukrainian sides.
The UN human rights monitoring mission in Ukraine stated that both Kyiv and Moscow are guilty of violating the rights and extrajudicial executions of prisoners of war.
However, the Ukrainian authorities, unlike the Russian ones, have granted international observers access to the prisoner camps and launched investigations into most of the alleged killings of captured people.
The report released by the mission contains data on the killings of up to 25 Russian and 15 Ukrainian prisoners of war.
Commissioner of the Human Rights Council Dmitry Lubinets said that he did not agree with the conclusions of the UN Mission and demanded evidence of executions.
We are deeply concerned by the arbitrary executions we have recorded of 25 Russian prisoners of war and persons who have ceased participation in hostilities committed by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, – BBC reports a statement at a press conference in Kiev, head of mission Matilda Bogner. “While we know that the Ukrainian authorities have opened investigations into five cases involving 22 victims, we do not have data on any court proceedings.”
Half of the 229 Russian POWs interviewed by the mission spoke about their alleged mistreatment in captivity.
We are also deeply concerned about the arbitrary executions of 15 Ukrainian prisoners of war following their capture by the Russian Armed Forces. The Wagner PIK military carried out 11 of these executions,” Bogner added.
She did not speak about any investigation into extrajudicial executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war by the Russian side.
Most Ukrainian prisoners of war said that, once captured, they were tortured and tortured by the Russian military and FSB officers.
Torture included beatings, electric shocks, gunshot or stab wounds. A common occurrence was the imitation of the death penalty,” Bogner said.
Most Ukrainian prisoners of war say they were tortured. One Ukrainian prisoner of war died from his wounds hours after being tortured, the report says. The prisoners were tortured for information, intimidation, humiliation and revenge, the report notes.
The conditions in which many Ukrainian soldiers were kept were shocking, Bogner said, adding that prisoners had little or no access to medical care.
The report also states that five Ukrainian prisoners of war died during internment due to lack of medical care.
The number of documented cases of torture and ill-treatment during internment in penitentiaries is shocking – more than 84% of people have experienced this behavior, Bogner said.
The mission participants interviewed more than 400 prisoners of war, 200 from each side. Additionally, the UN mission points out that Russia did not provide access to places of detention of prisoners of war, unlike Ukraine.
The Mission also produced another report on cases of war-related sexual violence. UN experts recorded 133 victims of sexual violence in Ukraine, including 85 men, 45 women and three girls, Bogner said. Such data was collected until the end of January 2023.
In early March, the Ukrainian authorities distributed a video recording, which they claimed showed the execution of the captured Ukrainian soldier Oleksandr Matsiyevsky. On the video, you can hear how the unarmed Matsievsky says “Glory to Ukraine!”, after which they begin to shoot at him.
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.