Anniversary of terrorist attack in Olenivka: Russia has not allowed observers to enter territory for expert analysis in two years - UN

The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) on the second anniversary of the terrorist attack in the penal colony #120 near Olenivka emphasized that Russia has not allowed UN observers to enter the territory, nor has it conducted any other independent expert analyzes.
The press service of the HRMMU emphasizes that this week marks two years since the killing of at least 50 Ukrainian prisoners of war and the wounding of 151 prisoners of war in the penal colony near Olenivka, which remains under Russian occupation, Censor.NET reports with reference to Interfax-Ukraine.
"...the authorities of the Russian Federation have taken measures that have prevented independent efforts to establish the facts of the explosions in Olenivka. The scene of the incident was not only not preserved, but also distorted, and material evidence was damaged. The Russian Federation did not allow UN observers to enter the area, and no other independent expert analyses were conducted. Instead, the Russian authorities claimed that the strike was carried out by HIMARS missiles fired by the Armed Forces of Ukraine," the statement said.
The mission recalled that based on interviews with more than 50 witnesses and survivors, as well as on the analysis of video and photographic materials, the UN Human Rights Office concluded last year that the explosions were not caused by HIMARS missiles fired by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
"Although the exact type of weapon and its exact location could not be determined, the signs of structural damage appear to be consistent with the trajectory of a projectile traveling from east to west," the UN noted.
The HRMMU emphasizes that the lack of accountability for deaths and injuries in the Olenivka colony fits into a broader context of widespread and regular torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war. The Russian authorities continue to hold prisoners of war in appalling conditions, deprive them of medical care and allow only limited or no contact with their families and the outside world.
"The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine continues to interview Ukrainian prisoners of war upon their return to Ukraine and their families, and reiterates its call for the establishment of truth and accountability in accordance with the fundamental principles of international humanitarian and human rights law," the statement said.
As a reminder, on July 28, 2022, the Russian armed forces arranged a thermobaric explosion on the territory of a penal institution in Olenivka, Donetsk region, where Ukrainian prisoners of war were held. According to the Prosecutor General's Office, the explosion killed about 40 Ukrainian soldiers and injured 130.