UN Commission: Russian Drone Strikes On Civilians Near Frontline Amount To Crimes Against Humanity

(MENAFN- UkrinForm) The statement was made in the Commission's latest report to the UN Human Rights Council, according to Ukrinform.

Russian armed forces have targeted civilians and a wide array of civilian objects using short-range drones in localities stretching over 300 kilometres along the right bank of the Dnipro River.

In May this year, the Commission concluded that such drone attacks in the Kherson region were widespread and systematic and amounted to crimes against humanity of murder. The evidence now shows that similar drone attacks also target civilians and civilian objects in the Dnipropetrovsk and Mykolaiv regions. In all three regions, the circumstances of the attacks show“the perpetrators' intention to kill, harm and destroy”.

It is stressed that Russian armed forces have been carrying out attacks from positions on the left bank of the Dnipro River with drones that allow real time observation and tracking of targets.

“They pursued the victims, sometimes over long distances, and dropped explosives on them, causing death and injuries. Drones have also struck ambulances and other emergency services, preventing them from reaching the victims,” the report says.

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The report stresses that these attacks have a devastating impact on the civilian population living in the affected areas. They have caused extensive damage and destruction, leaving entire localities unliveable. Essential services and shops have been unable to operate. The terror instilled in the population and the ensuing coercive environment have compelled thousands to flee.

Russian Telegram channels run by the perpetrators themselves, or by persons close to the Russian drone units involved, have disseminated hundreds of videos of civilians being killed or injured, which amounts to the war crime of outrages upon dignity. They have also posted threatening texts announcing further attacks and exhorting the population to leave, according to the press release.

In the Commission's view, the conduct of the Russian armed forces may amount to the crime against humanity of forcible transfer of population. The Commission said it will return to this issue in its report to the General Assembly in October.

“Three and a half years of armed conflict in Ukraine continue to have a devastating impact on the civilian population. The violations and corresponding crimes documented have inflicted unspeakable suffering and hardship on the affected populations,” said the Chair of the Commission, Erik Møse.

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At the same time, the Commission has been unable to conclude its investigation into allegations made by Russian authorities of drone attacks by the Ukrainian armed forces, due to lack of access to the territory, concerns relating to the safety of witnesses, and in the absence of response to the Commission's questions addressed to the Russian Federation.

In addition, another issue being investigated by the Commission is a pattern of deportations and transfers of adult civilians from the areas of Zaporizhzhia region that are under Russian control.

“The investigations into short-range drone attacks as well as deportations and transfers reveal coordinated and organized efforts on the part of Russian authorities to further capture territory, and to consolidate their grip over areas they already control in Ukraine, while compelling local populations to leave,” the report says.

It is stressed that recurrent attacks have gradually destroyed entire localities. Many of the victims suffer from the loss of loved ones or of their houses and livelihoods and feel that they have“lost everything.” Closer to the frontlines, older persons have been particularly affected, as many are unable to flee, making them vulnerable to risks of attacks.

As earlier reported by Ukrinform, the UN Human Rights Council extended the mandate of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine for a further period of one year.

The Commission was established by the Human Rights Council in 2022 to investigate all alleged violations and abuses of human rights, violations of international humanitarian law and related crimes in the context of the aggression against Ukraine by the Russian Federation. The Commission comprises Erik Møse (Chair), Pablo de Greiff and Vrinda Grover.

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