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☆ Russia accused of using hunger as a weapon of war in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-13 | by ( Sophie Tanno | Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Mariupol, a port city on the Sea of Azov, was encircled and captured by Russian forces at the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. This included the establishment of ad hoc distribution points for food, water and other basic necessities. They were attacking food distribution points.”There were numerous opportunities for Russian forces to alleviate civilian suffering, he said, but they failed to do so. Ukrainian authorities and some international officials have previously accused Russia of robbing the country of grain and other commodities in areas it occupied. Accusations that Russia is using food as a weapon of war have been mounting ever since the first reports emerged in the spring of 2022 of grain being stolen by Russian troops.

Persons: “, Nikolai Osychenko, ”, Osychenko, Mariupol, Alexei Alexandrov, ’, Yousuf Syed Khan, Cross, ” Khan, Pavel Klimov, Khan, Vladimir Putin Organizations: CNN, Mobile, Team, Global, International Criminal Court, ICC, EU Commission, Russia’s Ministry of Defense, Mariupol City, Global Rights, International Committee, United Nations, Reuters, Russian Locations: Russia, Mariupol, Ukrainian, Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States, Azov, Russian, Ukraine, Ukraine’s Donetsk Oblast, Mariupol City, “, Moscow, Syria, Aleppo City

☆ Kherson detention centers: Russian troops tortured nearly half of those held, international human rights report finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Vasco Cotovio | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Nearly half of Ukrainians held in Russian detention centers in Kherson were subjected to widespread torture including sexual violence, according to a report published Wednesday. The report reveals analysis of an initial pool of 320 cases of detention in Kherson, across more than 35 identified detention centers. The report adds that suffocation, waterboarding, severe beatings and threats of rape were other techniques commonly used against victims by Russian guards in the Kherson torture chambers, according to the specialist unit. Mykytenko says these patterns of rape and torture point towards a Russian intent to eradicate Ukrainian identity. Russia has repeatedly denied accusations of torture and human rights abuses in Ukraine despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, investigated, compiled and shared by international human rights organizations and news organizations.

Persons: it’s, Anna Mykytenko, ” Mykytenko, Mykytenko, Wayne Jordash, ”, “ Organizations: CNN, Mobile Justice Team, EU, Ukraine’s, Global Rights Compliance, Global Rights, “, Kremlin Locations: Kherson, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Russia

☆ International group working to identify Russian forces that carried out grisly war crimes on Kherson prisoners
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Editor's note: The following article contains graphic material detailing reports of torture of people in Ukraine. WASHINGTON — The identification of Russian forces who carried out various forms of torture and sexual violence on prisoners in the Ukrainian city of Kherson is "well underway," according to a team of international lawyers investigating alleged war crimes. Kherson, once home to more than 280,000 people, was the first major city to fall to Russian forces during Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. After months of Russian occupation, the southeastern city was liberated in November by Ukrainian forces, which reopened Kherson to international humanitarian and investigation teams. Others detailed incidents where genital mutilation was threatened and at least one person said they were forced to witness the rape of another detainee by a foreign object.

Persons: Wayne Jordash, Read Organizations: WASHINGTON, Ukrainian, Global Rights, CNBC, Mobile Justice Team, Mobile Justice, State Department, European, Foreign, Commonwealth, Development Locations: Ukraine, Ukrainian, Kherson, Russian, Moscow's, European Union

☆ Torture, sexual violence commonly used by Russian forces in Ukraine, say experts
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Anthony Deutsch | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Ukrainian authorities are reviewing more than 97,000 reports of war crimes and have filed charges against 220 suspects in domestic courts. The Kremlin has consistently denied allegations of war crimes in Ukraine by forces taking part in a "special military operation" it says was launched to "de-Nazify" its neighbour and protect Russia. In June, Ukrainian prosecutors brought their first case over the alleged deportation of dozens of orphans from Kherson, charging a Russian politician and two suspected Ukrainian collaborators with war crimes. "The true scale of Russia’s war crimes remains unknown," Anna Mykytenko, senior legal adviser at Global Rights Compliance, said of the latest findings on torture. The torture techniques most commonly used were suffocation, waterboarding, severe beatings and threats of rape, it found.

Persons: Anna Voitenko, Vladimir Putin, Team's, Anna Mykytenko, Wayne Jordash, Anthony Deutsch, Alex Richardson Organizations: REUTERS, Mobile Justice Team, Global Rights, Criminal Court, ICC, The Mobile, European Union, Survivors, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Kherson, The Hague, Russia, Britain, United States, Russian

☆ Evidence suggests the Ukrainian dam collapsed due to a controlled explosion set off inside the structure. An international investigative group says it's 'highly likely' Russian forces were behind the
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A critical dam in southern Ukraine collapsed on the early morning of June 6, displacing thousands. Experts say the dam's collapse could only happen with a large explosion from within, per NYT. "If your objective is to destroy the dam itself, a large explosion would be required," Michael W. West, a geotechnical and geological engineer, told The Times. The Times reported that a US intelligence satellite also captured infrared heat signals in the area just before the dam fell apart. A senior US military official told the Times that Russian operatives were most likely behind the attack.

Persons: —, Michael W, Strelets Organizations: Service, The New York Times, Times, The Times, Mobile Justice Team, European Union, CNBC Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Russian, Kherson, Dnipro, Romania

☆ Russian forces ‘highly likely’ behind attack on Ukrainian dam, international law investigation says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Maxar satellite imagery BEFORE the damage to the Nova Kakhovka Dam in Ukraine. WASHINGTON — An international team of investigators said in a new report Thursday that it is "highly likely Russian forces deliberately destroyed" the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine. Murdoch, who was part of one of the first delegations to arrive at the site, added the attack on the dam may constitute a war crime. Both Russia and Ukraine have placed the blame squarely on each other for the explosion at the dam. The predawn attack on the Russian-held dam unleashed the worst ecological disaster in Ukraine's history since the 1986 meltdown of Chornobyl.

Persons: WASHINGTON —, Catriona Murdoch, Murdoch, Igor Klymenko, Yousuf Syed Khan, Khan Organizations: Technologies, WASHINGTON, Global Rights, Mobile Justice Team, U.S . State Department, European, Foreign, Commonwealth, Development Office Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Kherson, European Union

☆ 'Highly likely' Russia behind Ukraine dam collapse, international experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Anthony Deutsch | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

AMSTERDAM, June 16 (Reuters) - It is "highly likely" that the collapse of the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine was caused by explosives planted by Russians, a team of legal experts assisting Ukraine's prosecutors in their investigation said in preliminary findings released on Friday. Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused Ukraine of destroying the Kakhovka dam as a Western-backed tactic to escalate the conflict. Ukraine is investigating the blast as a war crime and possible criminal environmental destruction, or "ecocide". "Even in the highly unlikely scenario the dam, or indeed the area nearby, posed a valid military objective commensurate with eviscerating the dam, it is still afforded an elevated protection under international humanitarian law," she said. The ICC, the world's permanent war crimes tribunal, is also investigating the attacks on Ukraine's infrastructure, which may violate international law.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Yousuf Syed Khan, Khan, Catriona Murdoch, Anthony Deutsch, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: Global Rights, International Criminal, Reuters, ICC, Thomson Locations: AMSTERDAM, Ukraine, Soviet, Kherson

☆ Russian forces target food and water sources to starve Ukrainians, international law report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

People receive food from AFAT - Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency on November 28, 2022 in Chernihiv, Ukraine. WASHINGTON — Russian occupying forces in Ukraine have employed starvation tactics on civilians by targeting food lines, agricultural harvests and water infrastructure, according to a team of international lawyers helping Kyiv investigate alleged war crimes. The Kremlin has previously denied that its forces commit war crimes or deliberately target civilians and related critical infrastructure. The lawyers and investigators also found that infrastructure related to Chernihiv's water supply was targeted by aerial bombing. Elsewhere in Ukraine, the investigators found that Russian forces prioritized stealing harvests and destroying agricultural machinery.

Persons: Catriona Murdoch, Vladimir, Putin's, Murdoch, Read Organizations: Emergency Management, WASHINGTON —, Global, CNBC, Mobile Justice Team, Mobile, U.S . State Department, European, Foreign, Commonwealth, Development Office, Russian Embassy, Washington , D.C, Kremlin, Soyuz Locations: AFAT, Chernihiv, Ukraine, WASHINGTON, WASHINGTON — Russian, Ukrainian, European Union, Russian, Washington ,, Kherson

☆ At least 20 torture centers in Kherson were directly financed by the Kremlin, international lawyers say in a new report
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

A photo of a hallway in a building where Russian forces established a torture center in Kherson. In November, Ukrainian forces liberated the southeastern city, once home to more than 280,000 people. A photo of a cell used by Russian forces to detain Ukrainian civilians in the southeastern city of Kherson, Ukraine. A U.N. report previously outlined grisly accusations of war crimes committed by Russian forces in Ukraine. Pierre Crom | Getty ImagesSurvivors also said in interviews with lawyers that electric shock torture and waterboarding were common tactics used by Russian forces at the torture centers.

WHO IS INVESTIGATING WAR CRIMES IN UKRAINE? Ukrainian war crimes prosecutors are working with mobile justice teams supported by international legal experts and forensic teams. A total of 296 individuals have been charged with war crimes. War crimes can be defined under customary international law or national law. A number of mostly European states have universal jurisdiction laws that allow them to prosecute Ukrainian war crimes.

The visit by a team from Global Rights Compliance, an international legal practice headquartered in The Hague, has not previously been reported. More than 50,000 alleged incidents of international crimes have been reported by Ukraine's prosecutor general since Russia's full-scale invasion. Widespread or systematic sexual violence could amount to crimes against humanity, generally seen as more serious, legal specialists said. He added that more than half said they had been subjected to various forms of sexual violence. UNIQUE CHALLENGESElderfield said sexual violence was not always given the prominence it should have in national and international investigations.

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