Human Rights Watch accuses Russia of war crimes
"The cases we documented amount to unspeakable, deliberate cruelty and violence against Ukrainian civilians, rape, murder and other violent acts against people in the Russian forces' custody should be investigated as war crimes" said Hugh Williamson, the organization's director for Europe.
- World
- DPA
- Published Date: 04:36 | 03 April 2022
- Modified Date: 04:41 | 03 April 2022
The non-governmental organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused the Russian army in Ukraine of war crimes including the execution of civilians and looting.
A report published in Warsaw points to war crimes around the cities of Kiev, Kharkiv and Chernihiv, based on interviews with 10 witnesses, victims and residents, according to human rights activists.
"The cases we documented amount to unspeakable, deliberate cruelty and violence against Ukrainian civilians," said Hugh Williamson, the organization's director for Europe.
"Rape, murder and other violent acts against people in the Russian forces' custody should be investigated as war crimes."
Among the cases listed is the shooting of a man on March 4 in Bucha, north-west of Kiev.
One witness reported that five men were forced by soldiers to kneel by the roadside. The Russians then pulled then men's T-shirts over their heads and shot one of them in the head from behind.
On February 27, at least six men were executed by soldiers in the village of Staryi Bykiv near Chernihiv, according to the report. A 31-year-old woman also reported that she was raped several times by a soldier in a school in the Kharkiv region.