Russia tortures and imprisons thousands of Ukrainians
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An OSCE report presented today reveals what we have actually known all along. Russia imprisons thousands of Ukrainians in the occupied territories, placing them in prison-like camps and using torture. The report from the OSCE makes for harrowing reading.
The darkest
Norwegian lawyer Cecilie Hellestveit, who co-authored the report, says that this is the darkest case she has ever worked on. She is a lawyer and expert in the rules of war.
The conditions for Russian civilians in captivity are astonishingly poor and inhumane. She said this to the Norwegian newspaper VG. She also says that this is a systematic violation of the Geneva Conventions on war victims, which Russia has also joined.
There are no reliable estimates of how many civilians are imprisoned in the areas that are or were occupied by Russia since the invasion on February 24, 2022. Cecilie Hellestveit says it’s several thousand, but that the exact number is difficult to quantify. Ukraine reports 16,000 missing persons. Some of them may have been killed, while others remain in hiding. However, we are talking about several thousand Ukrainians.
Systematic use of torture
Cecilie Hellestveit says that it can be established that Russia uses torture. This can be established because the same descriptions are told by many independent sources. According to Cecilie Hellestveit, there has been severe harassment of Ukrainians. This applies to blows, electric shocks and blows with various objects. Also fingers are cut off the victims. Rapes of prisoners have also been reported.
When parts of eastern Ukraine were under the control of Russian-backed separatists, torture and executions were also reported there. Feel free to read my blog about this.
Cecilie Hellestveit says that Russia’s entire treatment of Ukrainians in the war zone appears well planned. Previously, she helped write the report on the kidnapped children. These are children who have been taken from their Ukrainian families and offered to Russian parents for adoption. Then, as now, Russia denied the facts. The report led to great international attention and pressure. As a result, some of the children have been repatriated.
Sources:
https://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/i/OonpyO/espen-barth-eide-reagerer-grove-russiske-krenkelser