Russia forces Ukrainians from the occupied territories to serve in its army. This is war crime, - HRW
The Russian government continues to forcefully mobilize Ukrainians in its occupied territories of Ukraine into its army.
This is stated in a new report by Human Rights Watch, Censor.NET reports.
Human rights defenders emphasized that this practice "is a war crime."
"Russian authorities are openly and illegally forcing men in the occupied territories of Ukraine to fight against their own country," said Hugh Williamson, Europe and Central Asia director of Human Rights Watch.
"Less visible is their practice of putting pressure on Ukrainian civilians in detention, who have nowhere to hide or escape to avoid joining Russian forces," Williamson added.
Earlier, Ukrainian ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets reported that in the occupied territories, Ukrainian boys under the age of majority must submit their personal data to the occupying military commissars. They are included in the list of conscripts.
In October, the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) drew attention to the fact that Russia is carrying out a campaign to mobilize Ukrainian citizens into its army who were subjected to forced Russian passport issuance in the territories occupied by the Russian Federation.
He indicated that, according to the Ukrainian side, the Russians threatened residents of the occupied territories with fines and detention for not appearing at the "military commissariat".
