UN's inquiry commission on Ukraine concerned over Russian forces' attacks on civilians

ATHENS

The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine on Monday expressed concern about Russian forces' attacks on civilians in the ongoing war in Ukraine.

“Being concerned by the continuous evidence of war crimes committed by the Russian armed forces in Ukraine, the Commission is now undertaking more in-depth investigations regarding unlawful attacks with explosive weapons, attacks affecting civilians, torture, sexual and gender-based violence, and attacks on energy infrastructure,” the commission said at the UN Human Rights Council’s 54th session in the Swiss city of Geneva.

The UN Human Rights Council established an inquiry commission on March 4, 2022, with a mandate to investigate violations of human rights and international humanitarian law in Russia's war in Ukraine.

The commission said they documented explosive weapons attacks on residential buildings, a functional medical facility, a railway station, a restaurant, shops, and commercial warehouses, and that such attacks resulted in civilian casualties, damage and destruction of key facilities, and disruption of essential services and supplies.

“The Commission deplores that attacks continue to take place harming civilians and medical institutions which have protected status,” it said.

Furthermore, the commission claimed that Russian forces used systematic and widespread torture and rape in the areas they occupied.

“The Commission continues to map and document such facilities, reinforcing its findings that torture was widely used by Russian authorities,” it added.

The commission also reiterated concern over the scale and gravity of violations and corresponding crimes committed in Ukraine by Russian armed forces, emphasizing the need for accountability.

“It also recalls the need for the Ukrainian authorities to expeditiously and thoroughly investigate the few cases of violations by its own forces,” it added.