10th September, 2015
Close to 8,000 people have died in the conflict in Ukraine since mid-April last year, according to the UN.
Releasing the latest UN human rights monitoring report for the country this week, UN human rights chief Zeid Ra”ad Al Hussein said the shelling of residential areas had led to a “disturbing increase” in the number of civilian casualties over the past three months.
“More needs to be done to protect civilians and put a complete stop to the hostilities, in accordance with the February ceasefire agreement,” he said.
The latest report, which covers the period from 16th May to 15th August this year, shows that the number of civilian casualties for the period was more than double that of the previous three months, with at least 105 people killed and 308 injured compared to 60 killed and 102 injured between 16th February and 15th May.
It brings to 7,962 the total number of people killed – including Ukrainian armed forces, civilians and members of the armed groups – and the number of injured to at least 17,811.
The report said the situation in Ukraine “continued to be marred by ongoing armed hostilities in some areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions reportedly fuelled by the presence and continuing influx of foreign fighters and sophisticated weapons and ammunition from the Russian Federation.”
It said it is of concern “that the Russian Federation has continued to send white-truck convoys without the full consent or inspection of Ukraine, and their exact destination and content could not be verified.”
The report documents cases of killings, abductions, torture and ill-treatment, sexual violence, forced labour, ransom demands and extortion in the territories controlled by the self-proclaimed “Donetsk people”s republic” and “Luhansk people”s republic’.
“An estimated three million people continue to reside in the territories under control of the “Donetsk people”s republic” and “Luhansk people”s republic” without protection from the human rights violations and abuses of the armed groups and their supporters,” it said. “The estimated hundreds of people held by the armed groups are at particular risk of being tortured, ill-treated or otherwise abused.”
It also noted there was a “persistent pattern of arbitrary and incommunicado detention by the Ukrainian law enforcement (mainly by the Security Service of Ukraine) and by military and paramilitary units”, in cases it said were often accompanied by torture and ill-treatment of detainees and violations of their procedural rights.
According to the report, human rights violations also continue to be committed by the de facto authorities in the ‘Autonomous Republic of Crimea’.
“Former Maidan activists resident in Crimea continued to be under scrutiny of the “investigative” bodies,” the report said. “Dissenting voices continued to be effectively silenced and denied any public space, especially as regards to those Crimean Tatars organisations which the de facto authorities consider non-loyal or claim to be extremist.”
~ www.ohchr.org/Documents/Countries/UA/11thOHCHRreportUkraine.pdf
– DAVID ADAMS
