Russia violates international humanitarian law by issuing illegal sentences on Ukrainian defenders - Lubinets
The Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets sent official letters to the UN and the ICRC to record violations of international humanitarian law by Russia.
According to Censor.NET, he wrote about this in his telegram channel.
Lubinets recalled that the Russian court has once again convicted Ukrainian citizens: this time in Rostov-on-Don, 23 Ukrainian prisoners of war who served in the Azov regiment were sentenced to 13 to 23 years in prison, half of them in a maximum security colony.
The prisoners of war were accused of "forcible seizure of power", "organizing the activities of a terrorist organization," and "training for terrorist activities". Another 11 defendants in the Azov case were convicted in absentia, as they had already returned to Ukraine as a result of the prisoner of war exchange.
The Ombudsman emphasized that international humanitarian law prohibits the trial of prisoners.
"The international community cannot stand aside from these gross violations! Decisive measures must be taken to release Ukrainian prisoners of war and bring Russia to justice for violations of international humanitarian law. It should also be understood that such "courts" are a game of the Russian Federation! The aggressor is trying to make Ukrainian soldiers look like "criminals". We need to tell the international community that this is not the case! Ukrainian prisoners of war are combatants, not criminals! They fulfilled their duty to the state by defending its territorial integrity and sovereignty. In accordance with international humanitarian law, they have a legal status and cannot be prosecuted for performing their military duty. And Russia's actions are aimed at creating an image for domestic and foreign audiences to discredit Ukraine and Ukrainians!" emphasized Lubinets.
