Latest news with #IndependentInternationalCommissionofInquiryonUkraine
STV News
6 days ago
- Politics
- STV News
UN finds evidence of war crimes as Ukrainians 'hunted' by Russian drones
People in Kherson are living in fear of Russian drone attacks, as ITV News Correspondent John Ray reports Russia has committed war crimes by systematically attacking Ukrainian civilians with drones in the port city of Kherson, according to a UN commission. A report released on Wednesday found Russian forces have launched hundreds of attacks targeting civilians and ambulances, during a months-long pattern of drone strikes on the right bank of the Dnipro river. Victims of the attacks were hit doing everyday activities, like visiting relatives, on the way to work, waiting for the bus, or travelling by bike, the UN was told. People reported drones suddenly appearing overhead and chasing them over long distances, before releasing explosives. Elderly people who struggled to escape the drones were also targeted. One woman said she was walking home with her 54-year-old husband when they heard a drone buzzing above. It immediately dropped an explosive, injuring both of them – but he did not survive. 'My husband died in my arms, bleeding to death,' she said. Another woman, 50, described how an ambulance had come to her aid after she had been injured by shelling, but a drone strike prevented it from helping her. A second ambulance arrived – but a drone dropped an explosive in front of it, setting the vehicle alight. The woman said she saw the driver burn to death. More than 150 people have been killed and hundreds more injured in similar strikes. These acts are war crimes and were committed with the 'primary purpose to spread terror', the report found, with residents left scared to make any movement outdoors. 'Their task is to terrorise us, to break us,' one person told the UN commission. Another said: 'Drones were attacking everything; minibuses, cars, pedestrians etc… every time you went out of the house you had to check the sky and look out for a buzzing sound, and, in any case, run.' The commission's chair told ITV News that drone attacks are persisting daily in Kherson The Kremlin has previously insisted it only launches attacks on Ukraine's military – but Erik Mose, Chair of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, told ITV News they had found no evidence of this. 'We are absolutely clear in our conclusions the cases we are addressing are only about civilian populations, and we have not discovered any military targets,' he said. Kherson was the first major city captured by Russia, shortly after the invasion of Ukraine was launched in 2022. Ukrainian forces liberated the city later that year, but shelling and strikes on Kherson have continued as both sides continue to exchange fire. A screenshot from a drone video, showing an ambulance targeted by a drone attack. / Credit: UN Human Rights Council Residents described spending the majority of their time inside, only going outside on cloudy days or to places where they could hide under trees. Russian forces mostly used commercially drones in the attacks, modified with cameras to track, aim and drop explosives on targets, the report found. Video feeds taken from the drones have been shared on Russian Telegram channels, showing civilians being injured and killed. The report said the posting of these videos amounts to 'the war crime of outrages on personal dignity'. One video showed three people being attacked whilst repairing a roof. 'Once again, everything that moves will be destroyed,' the caption read. Another video caption used smiley face emojis to brag about preventing emergency services from reaching a woman who had been severely injured by a drone. 'Russian Federation soldiers behave like this is a safari,' a doctor in Kherson told the report authors. 'They drop explosives from drones like it is a video game.' The UN concluded Russia has carried out the war crimes of intentionally directing attacks against civilians in Kherson, outrages of personal dignity through sharing the footage, and forcible transfer of population as the attacks have forced civilians to leave the area. It also found Russia has violated international humanitarian law by committing violence to 'spread terror' amongst the population. The report calls on Russia to immediately end the drone attacks and called for the perpetrators of the war crimes to be held accountable. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Scoop
6 days ago
- Politics
- Scoop
‘My Husband Died In My Arms': Russian Drone Attacks On Ukrainians Amount To Crimes Against Humanity, UN Report
28 May 2025 'Russian armed forces have committed the crimes against humanity of murder and the war crimes of attacking civilians, through a months-long pattern of drone attacks targeting civilians on the right bank of the Dnipro River in Kherson Province,' the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine said. Attacks have been carried out since July 2024 in Kherson city and 16 localities stretching over more than 100 kilometres in riverfront areas under Ukrainian Government control. They are ongoing and nearly 150 civilians have been killed and hundreds more injured to date, according to official sources. Attacks 'planned and organised' 'The recurrence of these attacks for over 10 months, against multiple civilian targets and in a wide geographic area, demonstrates that they are widespread and systematic and have been planned and organised, requiring the mobilisation and allocation of necessary resources,' the report said. The Commission examined over 300 publicly available videos of attacks and over 600 text posts on Telegram channels and, where possible, identified victims. Over 90 residents from affected areas were interviewed, including victims, witnesses, local authorities and medical personnel. Civilians were targeted 'in various circumstances, mainly when they were outdoors, both on foot or while using any type of vehicles' the report said. Most victims were men, but women and children also were affected. 'My husband died in my arms' A woman from Poniativka village recounted that in September 2024, she was walking home with her husband and suddenly heard a drone. It was already above their heads and immediately dropped an explosive, giving them no time to seek shelter. Both were injured. ' My husband died in my arms, bleeding to death, because the ambulance did not arrive on time. I tried to stop the bleeding with a T-shirt, but it was not enough,' she said. Videos posted on Telegram Russian forces mostly used civilian drones that are widely commercially available, which were then modified. ' The weaponized versions of these drones allow their operators, via an embedded camera, to remotely track, aim, and drop explosives on targets. They can return to their point of origin to be reused,' the report said. 'Occasionally, perpetrators employed suicide drones that are also equipped with cameras but that explode upon impact on their targets.' Hundreds of the video feeds have been regularly disseminated on Russian Telegram channels, some of which have thousands of subscribers. 'The video footage that they posted displays the attacks and the resulting death, injury, damage, or destruction, and is styled like video games, often accompanied by background music and threatening text,' the report said. Ambulances targeted Furthermore, ambulances also have been targeted and struck by drones to prevent them from reaching victims, and some have died because they could not get to a medical facility in time. 'A 45-year-old man from Stanislav village recounted that in November 2024, a drone dropped an explosive near him as he was riding a moped, badly injuring his leg. An ambulance arrived, and while he was receiving first aid, a drone dropped two explosives on the ambulance,' the report said. The Commission stressed that the use of drones to target civilians and civilian objects is a violation of the fundamental principle of international humanitarian law as such attacks may only be directed at military objects. 'The Commission therefore concludes that Russian armed forces perpetrated the war crime of intentionally directing attacks against civilians in Kherson Province,' it said, while ' posting videos of civilians being killed and injured amounts to the war crime of outrages upon personal dignity.' 'Drones were attacking everything' The drone attacks have spread terror among residents of the affected areas. Many wait for cloudy days to go out, or seek cover under trees, where possible. 'Drones were attacking everything; minibuses, cars, pedestrians… every time you went out of the house, you had to check the sky and look out for a buzzing sound and, in any case, run,' a man from Antonivka settlement told the Commission. Moreover, fear is further induced by frequent messages posted on Telegram, such as ' Get out of the city before the leaves fall, you who are destined to die.' 'The recurrent drone attacks, the widely disseminated videos showing them, and numerous posts explicitly exhorting the population to leave suggest a coordinated state policy, on the part of the Russian authorities, to force the population of Kherson Province to leave the area,' investigators said. They concluded Russian forces may have committed the crime against humanity of forcible transfer of population. Mandate from Human Rights Council The commission is mandated by the UN Human Rights Council 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 Russia. The three Commissioners serve in their individual capacity and are independent from any government or organization, including the UN.
NDTV
6 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
"Crimes Against Humanity": UN Experts On Russia's Drone Attack In Ukraine
Russia's military has committed "crimes against humanity" and "war crimes" in its drone attacks on civilians in Ukraine's Kherson region, UN experts concluded in a report published Wednesday. The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, established by the UN Human Rights Council, said Russian armed forces were "systematically" hitting civilians. Russia's drone attacks are in the spotlight as Moscow has launched some of the heaviest missile and drone strikes of its three-year war in Ukraine, with US President Donald Trump voicing growing frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling him "absolutely crazy". "Russian armed forces have committed the crimes against humanity of murder and the war crimes of attacking civilians, through a months-long pattern of drone attacks targeting civilians on the right bank of the Dnipro River in Kherson Province," the inquiry said. "These acts were committed with the primary purpose to spread terror among the civilian population, in violation of international humanitarian law." The categorical nature of that statement is unusual for such an inquiry. "The attacks are continuing at the time of the publication of this report," they added. The inquiry said that since July last year, Russian military drone operators on the left bank of the Dnipro had "systematically" struck civilians, and had "targeted ambulances". 'No doubt' civilians targeted The commission documented drone attacks on civilians in Kherson city and 16 other localities, geolocating videos of attacks and reviewing open sources. Nearly 150 civilians had been killed and hundreds wounded, the report said, citing official sources. It said men, women and children were among the victims. "Several Russian Telegram channels with links to the perpetrating military units, some of them with thousands of followers, have disseminated hundreds of videos of the attacks from the original feeds of the drones." The footage "leaves no doubt that they intended to target civilians". The report said the attacks amount to the war crimes of intentionally directing attacks against civilians. The recurrence of such attacks for more than 10 months, against multiple civilian targets in a wide area "demonstrates that they are widespread and systematic and have been planned". Such elements "led the commission to conclude that Russian armed forces carried out drone attacks targeting civilians pursuant to an organisational policy and committed murder as a crime against humanity", the investigation said. The commission concluded that publishing of videos of civilians being killed and injured "amounts to the war crime of outrages upon personal dignity". Accountability Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The UN Human Rights Council established its highest level of inquiry in March that year to probe violations and abuses committed during the conflict. The commission examined allegations of Ukrainian drone attacks on civilian targets in Kherson province, but could not corroborate them due to lack of information and access on Russia's part. Moscow does not recognise the commission and did not respond to any of its questions regarding drone attacks. In its recommendations, the commission said Moscow should immediately end drone attacks on civilians and civilian objects, and acts that spread terror among civilians and lead to forcible displacement. The Kremlin should also ensure that all perpetrators involved in commissioning such crimes be held accountable to international standards. The commission said Kyiv should make sure victims are given treatment and support, and support those displaced as a result of drone attacks.
