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UN report points to nearly 5,000 civilians killed in Ukraine war

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) published an alarming report, this Wednesday (29), on the human rights situation in Ukraine in the context of the ongoing Russian invasion.

The UN has documented 10,000 civilian casualties since the start of the conflict on Feb. report.

She warned that the casualty numbers are “considerably higher” as the report only highlights the numbers the mission was able to independently verify.

“The Russian Federation’s armed attack on Ukraine has had a devastating impact on human rights across the country. We document violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law, including war crimes. These violations highlight the high toll the conflict is taking day by day,” Bogner said.

The report is based on information collected during 11 field visits, three visits to places of detention and 517 interviews with victims and witnesses between 24 February and 15 May 2022. Evidence is also based on court documents, official records and sources. open.

The report documents violations of international human rights and humanitarian law “to varying degrees, by both parties,” according to Bogner.

“The high number of civilian casualties and the extent of the destruction and damage done to civilian infrastructure have raised significant concerns that the attacks conducted by the Russian Armed Forces did not comply with international humanitarian law. Although on a much smaller scale, it also appears that the Ukrainian armed forces have failed to comply with international humanitarian law in the eastern parts of the country,” Bogner added.

The document also raised “serious concerns” about allegations of torture of prisoners of war by both sides of the conflict, including testimonies from 44 prisoners of war interviewed by the UN mission.

Bogner emphasized that the mission found evidence of widespread use of extrajudicial punishment against alleged looters, thieves and curfew violators in Ukraine.

“OHCHR has documented and verified allegations of unlawful killings, including summary executions of civilians in more than 30 settlements in the Kyiv, Chernihiv, Kharkiv and Sumy regions, committed while these territories were under the control of the Russian armed forces. In Bucha (Kyiv region) alone, OHCHR has documented the unlawful killings, including summary executions, of at least 50 civilians,” the report noted, adding that the full scale of the problem “has not yet been fully assessed.”

The UN document also highlighted “concern about the arbitrary detention and enforced disappearance” of representatives of local authorities, journalists, civil society activists and other civilians by Russian troops and affiliated armed groups.

The OHCHR has documented 248 cases of arbitrary detention, of which six resulted in deaths.

The OHCHR report includes “reasonable reason to believe” that the Russian and Ukrainian armed forces are using weapons equipped with cluster munitions, including Tochka-U missiles that have resulted in civilian casualties. The use of such weapons in populated areas contradicts international law.

Concluding the report, the OHCHR recommended that all parties to the conflict “respect and ensure respect at all times and in all circumstances” for international human rights and humanitarian law. The report also urged Russia to “immediately cease the armed attack” and fulfill its obligations under international law.

The Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine maintains its presence in Donetsk, Dnipro, Odesa and Uzhhorod.

Source: CNN Brasil

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