Ukrainian abducted in Russian-occupied Crimea; Ukraine's ombudsman appeals to Moscow
A Ukrainian citizen disappeared in Russian-occupied Crimea earlier in May after being detained by people who presented themselves as Federal Security Service (FSB) officers, Ukraine's Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said on May 29.
Serhii Hrishchenkov was taken in Sevastopol overnight on May 7, and his whereabouts are currently unknown, said Lubinets, who received an appeal from the man's daughter.
Lubinets added that he had appealed to his Russian counterpart, Tatyana Moskalkova, regarding the case. At the time of publication, the Russian ombudsman's office had not issued a public reaction.
The Ukrainian ombudsman stressed that Hrishchenkov's disappearance is "not an isolated case," with other people being kidnapped by alleged FSB officers.
"This case of a Ukrainian citizen once again demonstrates the inability of the occupation authorities to ensure the implementation of international civil and political rights for residents of occupied Crimea," Lubinets said in a statement on Telegram.
"Cynicism and human rights violations have become commonplace for thousands of Ukrainian citizens!"
Russian occupation of Crimea, ongoing since 2014, has been accompanied by a harsh crackdown on civil and political rights and persecution of Ukrainian activists, Crimean Tatars, and others.
Read also: How much does a Russian drone attack on Ukraine cost? The question is more complicated than it sounds
We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
'Operation Spiderweb': How Ukraine destroyed over a third of Russian bombers
Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) reported on Sunday that over a third of all Russian missile carriers have been hit in a coordinated drone attack aimed at different airfields in Russia located thousands of kilometres apart. More than 40 aircraft are known to have been hit, including the A-50, Tu-95, and Tu-22 M3, causing overall damage of more than €6 billion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said "Operation Spiderweb" had made "an absolutely brilliant result" which was "achieved solely by Ukraine." The Ukrainian president also shared more details on how the operation was carried out, explaining that 117 drones had been used, each with its own pilot. "The most interesting thing — and we can already say this publicly — is that the 'office' of our operation on Russian territory was located right next to the FSB (Federal Security Service) of Russia, in one of their regions,' he said in a post on Telegram. In a major blow to Russia's security services, Zelenskyy said Ukraine managed not only to execute the operation but also to safely withdraw the people involved. They were operating "in different Russian regions — in three time zones." 'Our most long-range operation. Our people involved in preparing the operation were withdrawn from Russian territory in time," he explained. Zelenskyy said it took Kyiv "one year, six months, and nine days from the start of planning to effective execution." He thanked the head of Ukraine's Security Service, General Vasyl Malyuk, and asked him to reveal the details and results of the operation to the public. "Of course, not everything can be revealed at this moment, but these are Ukrainian actions that will undoubtedly be in history books," he added. "Ukraine is defending itself, and rightly so — we are doing everything to make Russia feel the need to end this war. Russia started this war, Russia must end it," Zelenskyy wrote. Although Ukraine's security service has not revealed more details at this stage, Ukrainian outlets are reporting exactly how the operation was executed, referencing SBU sources. According to these reports, first-person-view (FPV) drones were smuggled deep inside Russia and hidden inside trucks in mobile log cabins. The cabins' roofs were then opened remotely, and the drones proceeded to launch their attack on Russian military bombers. Russia's Irkutsk Governor Igor Kobzev confirmed that the drones that attacked a military base in Siberia's Sredniy were launched from inside a truck. In a post on Telegram, he said that the launch site had been secured and there was no further threat to people's lives. Russian outlets also reported that other attacks were launched in a similar manner, with drones emerging from the backs of trucks. Social media footage widely shared by Russian media appears to show the drones rising from inside containers, while the panels lie discarded on the road. One clip appeared to show men climbing onto a truck in an attempt to intercept the drones. In a display of the planning process of "Operation Spiderweb", Ukraine's Security Service shared a photo on Telegram of SBU head General Malyuk looking at pictures of Russian bombers and the airfields. "Operation Spiderweb" is not the first unconventional operation to be carried out by Ukraine's Security Service. In October 2022, the SBU struck the Kerch bridge, which had been illegally built by Russia after its annexation of Crimea in 2014. The explosion, which Russian authorities said was caused by a truck bomb, badly damaged the bridge which links Moscow-occupied Crimea and Russia. The targeting of Russian bombers, which have been carrying out massive missile attacks on Ukrainian cities, was previously considered almost unthinkable. Moscow had made sure to keep them well out of the range of Kyiv's weapons, both homemade and those supplied by allies. Olenya air base is located in Russia's Murmansk region, around 2,000 km from the border with Ukraine. Belaya air base is in Russia's Irkutsk region, in south-eastern Siberia and over 4,000 km east of the frontline. These two airfields were among the hardest hit during Sunday's operation. Another notable aspect of the "Operation Spiderweb" was the choice of weapons. Kyiv used FPV drones, which are produced in Ukraine en masse and are widely used and appreciated by the military due to their affordability. FPV drones typically cost only a few hundred euros, while a Russian A50 radar detection aircraft, which was reportedly hit today along with other planes, costs over €300 million. Ukraine's presidential advisor and former minister of strategic industries Oleksandr Kamyshin has said Ukrainian manufacturers have the capacity to produce over 5 million FPV drones per year.
San Francisco Chronicle
2 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Asian shares slide as Russia-Ukraine conflict, OPEC+ output plan push oil prices higher
HONG KONG (AP) — Asian shares sank on Monday and oil prices jumped as trade tensions and the Russian-Ukraine conflict ratcheted up geopolitical uncertainty. Hong Kong's Hang Seng plunged more than 2% as Beijing and Washington traded harsh words over trade. U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement that he will double tariffs on steel and aluminum to 50% layered on still more worries for investors. A report over the weekend that China's factory activity contracted in May, although the decline slowed from April as the country reached a deal with the U.S. to slash President Donald Trump's sky-high tariffs, further undermined market sentiment. Markets in mainland China were closed for a holiday. Oil prices rallied after OPEC+ decided on a modest increase in output beginning in July. It was the third monthly increase in a row. U.S. benchmark crude oil gained $1.60 to $62.39 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, was up $1.41 at $64.19 per barrel. Moscow pounded Ukraine with missiles and drones just hours before a new round of direct peace talks in Istanbul and a Ukrainian drone attack destroyed more than 40 Russian planes deep in Russia's territory, Ukraine's Security Service said on Sunday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 2.2% to 22,778.45 as China and the U.S. accused each other of breaching their tariff agreement reached in Geneva last month. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 lost 1.6% to 37,356.97, while the Kospi in Seoul fell 0.4% to 2,686.17. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 retreated 0.2% to 8,416.00. On Friday, Wall Street closed its best month since 2023. The S&P 500 retreated less than 0.1% to end at 5,911.69 and the Dow industrials Jones Industrial Average edged 0.1% higher to 42,270.07. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.3% to 19,113.77. Gap weighed on the market even though the retailer reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The company behind Banana Republic and Old Navy fell 20.2% after saying tariffs on imports from China and other countries could add up to $300 million to its costs this fiscal year. It has strategies set to mitigate up to half of that before it hits its profits. Hopes had largely been rising that the worst of such worries had passed, which in turn sent stocks rallying, after Trump paused his tariffs on both China and the European Union. A U.S. court then on Wednesday blocked many of Trump's sweeping tariffs. That all sent the S&P 500 in May to its first winning month in four and its best since November. But the tariffs remain in place while the White House appeals the ruling by the U.S. Court of International Trade, and the ultimate outcome is still uncertain. Friday's most influential losses came from several Big Tech stocks. Nvidia fell 2.9% to give back some of its gain from earlier in the week after it topped analysts' expectations for profit in the latest quarter. It was the single heaviest weight by far on the S&P 500. On the winning side of Wall Street was Ulta Beauty, which rose 11.8% after the retailer reported stronger sales and profit than analysts forecast. It also raised the top end of its forecasted range for revenue this fiscal year even though CEO Kecia Steelman called the operating environment 'fluid.' In the bond market, Treasury yields eased after a report showed that the measure of inflation that the Federal Reserve likes to use was slightly lower in April than economists expected. A separate report from the University of Michigan said that sentiment among U.S. consumers was better in May than economists expected. Sentiment improved in the back half of the month after Trump paused many of his tariffs on China. In currency trading early Monday, the U.S. dollar fell to 143.55 Japanese yen from 143.87 yen. The euro inched up to $1.1364 from $1.1351.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Could Trump pardon Diddy and end his trial?
Sean "Diddy" Combs is being tried in a New York courtroom for racketeering and sexual trafficking. Could that daily drama vanish instantly if President Donald Trump pardoned the embattled rapper? "Yes, it could," says Brian Kalt, law professor at Michigan State University College of Law, who focuses on legal issues and the presidency. According to Kalt, Trump — who appears to be in the middle of a pardoning spree — would be within his presidential rights to extend a preemptive pardon to fellow New Yorker Combs, who has been described by witnesses so far as violent and abusive. "These are federal charges (against Combs), so that's the main limit. The matter has be federal, it has to be criminal vs. civil, and related to something that's already been done," says Kalt. "But the person doesn't have to even be charged yet, or convicted. The Supreme Court has said preemptive pardons are OK." Trump weighed in on the possibility Friday, May 30, in the Oval Office. "Nobody's asked" about a pardon, the president said. "But I know people are thinking about it. I know they're thinking about it. I think some people have been very close to asking." Trump added, "I haven't spoken to him in years. He really liked me a lot." 'Nobody's asked': President Trump doesn't rule out pardoning Sean 'Diddy' Combs Typically, one of the last gestures from an outgoing president is a pardon. In President Joe Biden's final days in office, he famously pardoned his son, Hunter, convicted of federal gun felonies and federal tax charges. At the end of Trump's first term, he granted clemency to political allies such as Roger Stone, found guilty of obstructing a congressional investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and related offenses. But pardons can take place during a president's term, says Kalt. The right was established in Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the Constitution, which among other things gives the president "power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment." Kalt says the power to pardon is derived from the British monarch's historic right and stems from a recognition that criminal law was often too harsh, and it was important to have a safety valve. "The president was the best person to be that safety valve because of his political accountability," he says. But that's where things get murky, he adds, noting that Republican lawmakers "don't appear willing to hold the president accountable" for granting pardons, meaning they aren't costing him in terms of political capital. In contrast, President Gerald Ford's controversial pardoning of disgraced President Richard Nixon was perceived so negatively "that it probably cost Ford re-election in 1976," Kalt says. In just over 100 days since taking office, Trump has issued pardons to a broad range of personalities. They include Todd and Julie Chrisley, stars of the reality show "Chrisley Knows Best," who were convicted in 2022 of swindling $36 million from Atlanta banks and being tax evaders, and rapper NBA YoungBoy, who in 2024 was sentenced to two years in prison for weapons possession. He also pardoned former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, convicted of wire fraud and extortion, and Jan. 6 participant and "Bob's Burgers" actor Jay Johnston. The reason many presidents issue pardons at the end of their terms is precisely to avoid political fallout, says Kalt. In that sense, Trump's brash approach suggests he has no concerns about such ramifications. "I don't agree with these pardons on their merits, but the fact that he did them when he is politically accountable as opposed to slinking out the door does add some legitimacy to them in that sense," he says. "With pardons, you don't need Congress, you wave your magic wand and it happens. You can see the appeal for a president, particularly one like Trump." One can also see the appeal for those such as Combs, whose ordeal could end instantly should Trump's pardon "wand" wave his way. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Will Trump pardon Diddy? Trial could end, experts say
