پادشاه بحرین ابتکار عمل «کنفرانس بین المللی صلح» در خاورمیانه
U.N. Human Rights Council votes to deepen Ukraine war crimes inquiry
The measure passed with 33 votes in favor and only two countries — China and Eritrea — voting against.
U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet told member states Thursday that her team had collected evidence of hundreds of killings of Ukrainian civilians by Russian soldiers and continues to verify allegations that “may amount to war crimes.”
“The scale of unlawful killings, including indicia of summary executions in areas to the north of Kyiv, is shocking,” Bachelet said in a video message to the council ahead of the vote. “These killings of civilians often appeared to be intentional, carried out by snipers and soldiers.”
More than 1,000 civilian bodies have been recovered in the Kyiv region alone, she said. In early April, Russian troops retreated from areas around the Ukrainian capital they had captured at the start of the war, leaving bodies in the streets and traumatized residents behind.
Bachelet said civilians had been killed while seeking food or water or fleeing in their vehicles, and some unarmed local men had been tortured before being killed. A monitoring mission from the U.N. office visited 14 towns and villages in the areas around Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv last week.
“This was the second OHCHR visit to these regions, and it pains me to imagine how many visits will be needed to document only a fraction of the egregious human rights violations that have occurred there,” Bachelet said.
“My Office continues to verify allegations of violations of international human rights law and of international humanitarian law, many of which may amount to war crimes.”, said #UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet while delivering her updates on 🇺🇦 to #SS34 https://t.co/4KlHaFwzGO
— UN Ukraine (@UN_Ukraine) May 12, 2022
The city of Mariupol, where Russian forces are closing in on the last Ukrainian holdout after an 11-week siege, remains inaccessible to international monitors and investigators. Bachelet said she was “shocked at the scale of the destruction” and the breaches of international law by Russian forces in the southern port city, where the U.N. estimates thousands of civilians have died.
Bachelet also said her office has verified a dozen cases of sexual violence across the country and is looking into more allegations. Most of the victims cited are women and girls, she said, though accounts of men and boys experiencing sexual violence have begun to emerge.
In a video address to the council, Ukraine’s deputy foreign minister, Emine Dzhaparova, decried the “sheer horror” and “pure evil” of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Dzhaparova said Russia was committing “the most gruesome human rights violations on the European continent in decades.”
More than 50 countries supported holding the special session to discuss the human rights situation in Ukraine. The human rights council suspended Russia last month over its alleged abuses since the invasion.
Today Ukraine’s 🇺🇦 Deputy Foreign Minister @EmineDzheppar showed this picture, by an 11 year old boy who was raped by Russian forces in front of his mother.
He is still too traumatised to speak.
The @UN_HRC must vote today to establish a new inquiry into violations by Russia. pic.twitter.com/xXrCM8weZl
— UK Mission Geneva 🇬🇧 (@UKMissionGeneva) May 12, 2022
Erik Mose, chair of the three-member investigative commission, gave its first progress update to the council on Thursday. The commission has spoken with states, international organizations and Ukrainian officials but has not been able to get in touch with Russian officials, Mose said.
Mose emphasized that the commission needs “sufficient resources,” including necessary staff and access to Ukraine for evidence collection. The investigators will share their findings with the council in September.
Ukraine, as well as the United States and other allies, have said the alleged abuses amount to war crimes. Russia has denied targeting civilians.
Other bodies, including the International Criminal Court, are also investigating possible war crimes and rights violations committed during the war.