Latest news with #MattiasGuyomar
News18
4 days ago
- Politics
- News18
Russia Responsible For Downing Of Flight MH17 In Ukraine With 38 Australians: European Court
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled that Russia is responsible for human rights violations in Ukraine, including the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17. Russia was responsible for widespread violations of international law in Ukraine, including the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in 2014, Europe's top human rights court has ruled. The Boeing 777 flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was shot down on July 17, 2014, using a Russian-made Buk missile fired from territory in eastern Ukraine controlled by separatist rebels. All 298 passengers and crew were killed, including 196 Dutch citizens. This is the first time an international court has held Moscow accountable for human rights abuses related to the conflict there. In May, the United Nations' aviation agency found Russia responsible for the disaster. The court's remark came on Wednesday, when judges read the verdicts on four cases brought by Ukraine and the Netherlands against Russia since the start of the conflict in 2014. The allegations included murder, torture, rape, destroying civilian infrastructure, kidnapping Ukrainian children and shooting down the Malaysian Airlines passenger jet, Flight MH17, by Ukrainian separatists who side with Russia. Reading the decisions before a packed courtroom in Strasbourg, court president Mattias Guyomar said Russian forces breached international humanitarian law in Ukraine by carrying out attacks that 'killed and wounded thousands of civilians and created fear and terror." The judges also found the human rights abuses went beyond any military objective and Russia used sexual violence as part of a strategy to break Ukrainian morale. The complaints were brought before the court's governing body expelled Moscow in 2022, following the full-scale invasion. The ECHR is an important part of the Council of Europe, which is the continent's foremost human rights institution. Russia was expelled from the council over Moscow's invasion and war in Ukraine. However, the court can still deal with cases against Russia dating from before its expulsion. In 2023, the judges sided with Ukraine and the Netherlands in a challenge over jurisdiction, finding there was sufficient evidence to show areas in eastern Ukraine controlled by separatist rebels were 'under the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation," including providing weapons, and giving political and economic support. view comments First Published: July 10, 2025, 09:43 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
SBS Australia
4 days ago
- Politics
- SBS Australia
Russia was behind downing of MH17: EU rights court
Listen to Australian and world news, and follow trending topics with SBS News Podcasts . In July 2014, a commercial flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur - Malaysian Airlines flight M-H-17 - was shot down over eastern Ukraine, killing all 253 people on board - including 38 Australians. At the time, anti-Kyiv separatists, backed by Russia, were fighting Ukrainian forces after the Russian invasion and annexation of Crimea. It was these Russian-backed separatists who shot down the Boeing 777, using a Russian-made missile. More than a decade on, Europe's top human rights court has ruled that Russia was responsible. President of the European Court of Human Rights Mattias Guyomar, says Russia violated the right to life of passengers on board. 'The court found that the missile that downed the flight MH17 was fired by a member of the Russian military crew of the Buk Telar, or by a member of the DPR. It was not necessary for the court to decide exactly who fired the missile since Russia was responsible for the acts of the Russian armed force and of the armed separatists. No measures were taken by Russia to accurately identify the intended target of the missile in breach of international human law. The killing of the civilians onboard flight MH17 could not be described as a lawful act of war and violated the right to life under the Convention." The decision comes as part of a broader ruling examining four complaints filed to the court between 2014 and 2022, three from Ukraine and one from the Netherlands. The panel of 17 judges have found that since 2014, Russia has committed a series of flagrant and unprecedented violations of the European Human Rights Convention. These violations include, but are not limited to, the extrajudicial killing of civilians and military personnel outside combat, torture, forced labour, and the unlawful detention of civilians. Mattias Guyomar says these findings present the scale of violations carried out by the Russian state. "Taken as a whole, the evidence presented a picture of interconnected practices of manifestly unlawful conduct by agents of the Russian state on a massive scale across Ukraine. This included a practice of military attacks that were variously indiscriminate, disproportionate and targeted residential areas in breach of international humanitarian law." Russia left the European Human Rights Convention in September 2022, shortly after being expelled from the Council of Europe for its invasion of Ukraine. The decision is therefore largely symbolic, and Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov says Moscow plans to ignore them. But, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the ruling is a historic judgement and an undeniable victory for Ukraine and families of the victims hailed the decision as an important milestone in their 11-year quest for justice. Meanwhile, Russia has conducted its largest drone attack on Ukraine since the war began, with 728 drones and 13 missiles fired in a single night. Over 10 Ukrainian regions were hit, with the hardest hit being Lutsk, a critical hub used for receiving foreign military aid. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz says Russia's escalation is no longer about military targets. "Russia is now massively and deliberately bombing Ukrainian cities from the air night after night. Last night, we experienced some of the most massive bomb and rocket attacks since the beginning of the war. They are practically only targeting civilian sites; it is terrorism against the civilian population and has nothing to do with a war against military targets anymore." Responding after the attacks, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Russian President Vladimir Putin is attempting to make a point about the recently stalled U-S led peace efforts. With an increasing number of decoy drones fired by Russia in recent weeks, it appears Russia is seeking to overwhelm Ukraine's air defence systems. This comes as U-S President Donald Trump announced the U-S would resume weapons shipments to Ukraine after a brief pause. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova says the resumption of shipments from the US will make matters worse. "After Washington's previously announced decision to suspend military supplies to the Kyiv regime during the inspection of Pentagon warehouses, the United States made statements about their resumption. The consequences of such moves are yet to be assessed, but it can be said with certainty that the continuation of sending weapons to Ukraine wouldn't help, to put it mildly, bring about a peaceful settlement of the conflict, which the world community, including the West Wing, seemingly calls everyone for." Mr Zelenskyy, meanwhile, is urging Ukraine's partners to impose stricter sanctions on Russian oil and those who help finance Russia's war by buying it. Visiting Italy ahead of an international conference on rebuilding Ukraine, he met with U-S Ukraine Envoy Keith Kellogg for what he describes as "substantive" conversations about weapon supplies and strengthening air defences. It's the first time the U-S is taking part in a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing, a European dominated group of countries backing Ukraine. Kyiv is seeking to purchase more Patriot air defence systems from Washington, which are considered key to defending its cities. Donald Trump says he is considering the sale. "They would like it. They've asked for it. They're very rare, indeed, you know, because a lot of systems have been sent to Ukraine. But they would like to. I know they made the request. We're going to have to take a look at it. Very expensive. Very expensive system. It's a shame that we have to spend so much money on a war that would have never happened if I were president. That's a terrible, terrible war over there. And it's really a shame. It's, uh... Very sad. You know, when you talk about a system like that, highly sophisticated, tremendous amount of money, and they're doing it because they want to prevent death. They're getting hit hard, very hard. So we're looking at it."
NDTV
5 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
Russia Shot Down Flight MH17 Killing 298 People, Rules Top Europe Court
Strasbourg: Europe's top human rights court found that Russia "shot down" Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, killing all 283 passengers and 15 crew members. Judges at the European Court of Human Rights on Wednesday also delivered damning judgments against Russia in three other cases brought by Kyiv and the Netherlands accusing Moscow of atrocities in Ukraine dating back more than a decade. Malaysia Airlines' Boeing 777--from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur--was shot down on July 17, 2014, using a Russian-made Buk missile fired from territory in eastern Ukraine controlled by separatist rebels loyal to Moscow. Reading the judgment in a courtroom in Strasbourg, the court's president, Mattias Guyomar, said that the "evidence suggested that the missile had been intentionally fired at flight MH17, most likely in the mistaken belief that it had been a military aircraft." The judges found that Russia's refusal to acknowledge its involvement in the Flight MH17 disaster violated international law. It said that Moscow's failure to properly investigate the matter "significantly aggravated the suffering" of the relatives and friends of the dead. In May, the UN's aviation agency also found Russia responsible for the disaster. Other Ruling Against Russia The Court also found Russia guilty of murder, torture, rape, destruction of civilian infrastructure and kidnapping of Ukrainian children after Moscow's full-scale invasion of 2022. Guyomar said Russian forces breached international humanitarian law in Ukraine by carrying out attacks that "killed and wounded thousands of civilians and created fear and terror." The court also found the human rights abuses went beyond any military objective and that Russia used sexual violence as part of a strategy to break Ukrainian morale, the French judge said. "The use of rape as a weapon of war was an act of extreme atrocity that amounted to torture," Guyomar said. The 501-page judgment noted that Russia's refusal to participate in the proceedings also was a violation of the European Convention of Human Rights, the treaty that underpins the court. About The Court The ECHR is an important part of the Council of Europe, which is the continent's foremost human rights institution. The court's governing body expelled Moscow in 2022 in response to the all-out invasion. However, the court can still deal with cases against Russia dating from before its expulsion, and, legally, the country is still obliged to participate in the proceedings. The court will rule on financial compensation at a later date, but Russia's departure leaves little hope that damages will ever be collected. Russia And Ukraine's Reaction Asked about the judgment before the rulings were read, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "We won't abide by it, we consider it void." While the Kremlin said it would ignore the largely symbolic judgment, Ukraine hailed it as "historic and unprecedented," saying it was an "undeniable victory" for the embattled country.
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First Post
5 days ago
- Politics
- First Post
In a landmark ruling, court finds Russia guilty of shooting down flight MH17, killing 298 onboard
In a landmark ruling, the European Court of Human Rights found Russia guilty of shooting down Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in 2017, killing all 298 passengers and crew onboard read more Families of the victims of the MH17 disaster say they see the decision as an important milestone in their 11-year quest for justice. Reuters Europe's top human rights court delivered damning judgements against Russia on Wednesday, including the ruling that it was Moscow which shot down MH17, killing all passengers, including 38 Australians. The judges at the European Court of Human Rights were delivering rulings on four cases brought by Ukraine and the Netherlands. On Wednesday, the judges ruled that Russia was responsible for widespread violations of international law. Moscow was apprehended for shooting down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, back in 2014, along with murder, torture, rape, destruction of civilian infrastructure and kidnapping of Ukrainian children after it full-scale invasion of 2022, The Guardian reported. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The decision was read out in a packed courtroom in Strasbourg. The court's president, Mattias Guyomar, said that Russian forces engaged in 'manifestly unlawful' conduct in the July 2014 attack on the flight. 'The court agreed that the evidence suggested that the missile had been intentionally fired at flight MH17, most likely in the mistaken belief that it had been a military aircraft,' the court said in a statement. 'It was not necessary for the court to decide exactly who had fired the missile, since Russia was responsible for the acts of the Russian armed forces and the armed separatists." 'The court found that no measures had been taken by Russia to accurately identify military targets, in breach of the principles of distinction and precautions," Guyomar furthered. Russia reacts Meanwhile, the Kremlin has maintained that it would ignore what it described as a 'largely symbolic judgment'. Ukraine, on the other hand, lauded the court, calling the ruling 'historic and unprecedented.' Kyiv went on to call the verdict an 'undeniable victory' for the embattled country. The 501-page ruling noted that Russia's refusal to participate in the proceedings also was a violation of the European Convention on Human Rights, the treaty that underpins the court. When asked about the proceedings before the judgment was read, Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov dismissed the case altogether. 'We won't abide by it, we consider it void," he said at that time. Meanwhile, families of the victims of the devastating crash saw the judgment as an important milestone in their 11-year quest for justice. Thomas Schansman, whose 18-year-old son, Quinn, was aboard the jetliner, said the judgment made it clear who caused the disaster. Russia 'is responsible for killing my son', Schansman said. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The tragic story of MH17 On July 17, 2017, a Boeing 777 aircraft was shot down by a Russian-made Buk missile fired from territory in eastern Ukraine controlled by separatist rebels loyal to Moscow. All 298 passengers and crew onboard lost their lives in the tragic incident. The victims of the crash came from 17 countries and included 198 Dutch nationals, 43 Malaysians, 38 Australians and 10 from the UK. In the Wednesday ruling, the judge found that Russia's refusal to acknowledge its involvement in the plane crash violated international law. The court also charged Russia for failing to properly investigate the disaster 'significantly aggravated the suffering' of the relatives and friends of the dead. 'Russia never took any opportunity to tell the truth,' Schansman said. In May this year, the UN's aviation agency also found Russia responsible for the crash. The UN body gave the decision after Australia and the Netherlands launched legal proceedings against Russia under Article 84 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation. It is pertinent to note that the ECHR is an important part of the Council of Europe, the continent's foremost human rights institution. The court's governing body expelled Moscow in 2022, after it launched an all-out invasion of Ukraine. However, the court still has the authority to deal with cases against Russia dating from before its expulsion and, legally, the country is still obliged to participate in the proceedings. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The European court will now rule on financial compensation at a later date, but Russia's departure leaves little hope that damages will ever be collected. It is also important to note that the decisions in Strasbourg are separate from a criminal prosecution in the Netherlands in which two Russians and a Ukrainian rebel were convicted in absentia of multiple murders for their roles in the downing of Flight MH17.
Yomiuri Shimbun
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yomiuri Shimbun
European Court Finds Russia Committed Violations in Ukraine and Was behind Downing Flight Mh17
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Europe's top human rights court delivered damning judgments Wednesday against Russia in four cases brought by Kyiv and the Netherlands accusing Moscow of atrocities in Ukraine dating back more than a decade. Judges at the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Russia was responsible for widespread violations of international law — from shooting down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in 2014, to the murder, torture, rape, destruction of civilian infrastructure and kidnapping of Ukrainian children after Moscow's full-scale invasion of 2022. Reading the decisions in a packed courtroom in Strasbourg, Court President Mattias Guyomar said Russian forces breached international humanitarian law in Ukraine by carrying out attacks that 'killed and wounded thousands of civilians and created fear and terror.' The Kremlin said it would ignore the largely symbolic judgment, but Ukraine hailed it as 'historic and unprecedented,' saying it was an 'undeniable victory' for the embattled country. The judges found the human rights abuses went beyond any military objective and that Russia used sexual violence as part of a strategy to break Ukrainian morale, the French judge said. 'The use of rape as a weapon of war was an act of extreme atrocity that amounted to torture,' Guyomar said. The 501-page judgment noted that Russia's refusal to participate in the proceedings also was a violation of European Convention of Human Rights, the treaty that underpins the court. Asked about the judgment before the rulings were read, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: 'We won't abide by it, we consider it void.' Families of the victims of the Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 disaster saw the decision as an important milestone in their 11-year quest for justice. Thomas Schansman, whose 18-year-old son, Quinn, was aboard the jetliner, told The Associated Press that the judgment makes clear who caused the disaster. Russia 'is responsible for killing my son,' Schansman said. The Boeing 777 flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was shot down on July 17, 2014, using a Russian-made Buk missile fired from territory in eastern Ukraine controlled by separatist rebels loyal to Moscow. All 298 passengers and crew were killed, including 196 Dutch citizens. The judges found that Russia's refusal to acknowledge its involvement in the Flight MH17 disaster also violated international law. Russia's failure to properly investigate 'significantly aggravated the suffering' of the relatives and friends of the dead. 'Russia never took any opportunity to tell the truth,' Schansman said. In May, the U.N.'s aviation agency found Russia responsible for the disaster. The separatist conflict that broke out in eastern Ukraine in 2014 killed about 14,000 people before Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. The ECHR is an important part of the Council of Europe, which is the continent's foremost human rights institution. The court's governing body expelled Moscow in 2022 in response to the all-out invasion. However, the court can still deal with cases against Russia dating from before its expulsion and, legally, the country is still obliged to participate in the proceedings. The court will rule on financial compensation at a later date but Russia's departure leaves little hope that damages will ever be collected. In 2023, the judges sided with Ukraine and the Netherlands in a challenge over jurisdiction, finding there was sufficient evidence to show that areas in eastern Ukraine controlled by separatist rebels were 'under the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation.' That included providing weapons, and giving political and economic support. Wednesday's rulings won't be the last from the EHCR dealing with the war. Kyiv has other cases pending against Russia and there are nearly 10,000 cases brought by individuals against the Kremlin. The decisions in Strasbourg are separate from a criminal prosecution in the Netherlands in which two Russians and a Ukrainian rebel were convicted in absentia of multiple murders for their roles in the downing of Flight MH17. In 2022, the United Nations' top court ordered Russia to stop military operations in Ukraine while a case is heard, a process that takes years. Russia has flouted the order by the International Court of Justice. Last month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy formally approved plans to set up a new international court to prosecute senior Russian officials for the invasion.
