Russia to be probed for crimes against humanity!
The chairperson of the Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine Erik Mose has said Russia may be probed for crimes against humanity.
According to UN News, the Commission set up a year ago at the request of the Human Rights Council has found that Russia committed a lot of violations in Ukraine. Many of them are war crimes.
They included attacks with explosives in populated areas, killings of civilians, unlawful detention, torture, rape and other sexual violence. Unlawful transfers and deportations of children also took place.
Russian attacks against Ukraine’s energy grid also left millions without power in freezing temperatures.
The report covers nine Ukrainian regions and investigators went to 56 towns and interviewed about 600 witnesses.
The Commission’s first report which was released in October found that war crimes were committed by Russia in the regions of Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Sumy early on in the conflict.
Russian soldiers attacked areas with a high concentration of civilians which are a violation of international humanitarian law.
The attacks affected residential buildings, hospitals and shops. They also caused casualties and the Russian army showed a disregard for minimizing civilian harm.
The report also found that a lot of unlawful confinement went on in areas controlled by the Russian army. It went on with “consistent” torture by Russian soldiers.
The chairperson added that the Commission recommended further investigations to know whether the “violations have been committed in furtherance of a specific policy.”
The report also focused on the various cases of rape and sexual violence committed by Russian soldiers. Such cases happened during house searches and in detention. The victims were men, women and children from 4 to 82 years old.
Another war crime committed by the Russians is the transfer and deportation of children who had lost their parents or who were separated from them. Such children were transferred from Ukraine to Russia. The report states that the transfers “were not justified by safety or medical reasons.” They are thus not in accordance with international law.
The report also highlights the “deep loss and trauma” of survivors. It recommends that all the perpetrators of violations and crimes should be held accountable legally in “accordance with international human rights standards.”
