Latest news with #ProsecutorGeneral'sOffice
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
At least 206 Ukrainian soldiers died in Russian captivity amid brutal treatment, AP reports
At least 206 of the 5,000 Ukrainian soldiers repatriated to Ukraine died in Russian captivity, the Associated Press (AP) reported on May 27, citing Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War (POWs) data. There have been multiple reports of Ukrainian POWs being tortured or killed while in Russian captivity. As of May, the Prosecutor General's Office said criminal investigations were underway regarding the execution of 268 Ukrainian POWs. Violence in Russian prisons is likely to have been one of the factors that caused a large number of deaths of Ukrainian POWs, the AP reported, citing previous reports of human rights groups, the United Nations, the Ukrainian government, and a Ukrainian forensic expert who conducted the autopsies of the POWs. Out of 206 Ukrainian soldiers who died in captivity, more than 50 were killed during a Russian missile attack on Russia's notorious Olenivka POW camp in the occupied part of Donetsk Oblast. Ukrainian authorities said that days before the explosion in the Olenivka prison, Russian occupation authorities singled out Ukrainian members of the Azov Regiment, who were captured in Mariupol and were awaiting a prisoner exchange, to a separate part of the prison building — the one that was destroyed. The Prosecutor General's Office said that Russia likely used a thermobaric munition to strike the prison. Russia rejected the accusations and instead blamed the explosion on a Ukrainian HIMARS strike, an assertion rejected by the U.N. In March, the U.N. confirmed 27 cases of executions by Russian troops, which resulted in the deaths of 84 Ukrainian soldiers since August 2024. Victoria Tsymbaliuk, a representative of the Ukrainian Coordination Center for the Treatment of Prisoners of War (POWs), said in October 2024 that at least 177 Ukrainian prisoners died in Russian captivity since the beginning of Moscow's full-scale invasion. Read also: 'No one saw surrender as an option' – Mariupol defender on historic Azovstal fight and brutal Russian captivity We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
23-05-2025
- Politics
UN expert says Guatemalan prosecutor's office using criminal law to pursue opponents
GUATEMALA CITY -- A United Nations expert warned Friday at the conclusion of her two-week visit that Guatemala's prosecutor's office is increasingly using criminal law against former prosecutors, judges, defense attorneys, journalists and others. Margaret Satterthwaite, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, traveled the country meeting with judges, lawyers, lawmakers and others, including Guatemala's chief prosecutor. 'The instrumental use of criminal law by the Prosecutor General's Office appears to amount to a systematic pattern of intentional and severe deprivation of fundamental rights, targeted at specific groups,' Satterthwaite wrote in her preliminary report. 'This persecution appears to be intensifying, as those who have sought to end impunity and corruption, defend human rights, or speak out against abuses of power increasingly face digital harassment, threats, and criminal charges.' The office is led by Consuelo Porras, who has been sanctioned by the United States and other countries and accused of being an obstacle to corruption investigations. Satterthwaite met with Porras and her staff. They told Satterthwaite that they acted within the law, denied using criminal law to pursue opponents and said they were the real victims of attacks by the executive branch and its allies, the U.N. expert said. 'Criminal charges have been directed at more than 60 justice operators and defense or human rights lawyers,' Satterthwaite said, noting that more than 50 'justice operators' have been forced into exile by the prosecutor's office. Porras' office said later that it did not agree with Satterthwaite's preliminary report, because it did not reflect 'the complex work that we do, nor the exhaustive information that was provided.' 'We energetically reject the idea of a 'criminalization of sectors,'" the office said. 'Our actions are based on serious, objective investigations that strictly adhere to the Guatemalan legal framework.'
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia executes 2 Ukrainian POWs near Pokrovsk, prosecutors say
Russian forces have executed two Ukrainian prisoners of war during an assault near the village of Udachne, 12 kilometers (7 miles) west of Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office reported on May 23. According to the prosecutors, the incident occurred on May 22 during an attack on Ukrainian positions in one of the most active combat zones of the front line. Russian troops reportedly took two of four Ukrainian soldiers prisoner during the assault and later shot them dead with automatic weapons in a nearby forest. The fate of the other two soldiers remains unknown. "The deliberate killing of prisoners of war is a gross violation of the Geneva Conventions and is qualified as a serious international crime," the Prosecutor General's Office said in a statement. Ukraine's military and law enforcement agencies have launched an investigation to identify those responsible. The execution of prisoners of war (POWs) follows a documented pattern of war crimes committed by Russian forces. As of mid-December 2024, Ukrainian authorities recorded the execution of 177 Ukrainian soldiers after capture. Visual evidence and forensic records have backed repeated claims by Kyiv that Moscow systematically violates international humanitarian law by targeting unarmed soldiers and civilians. The Geneva Conventions classify summary executions of detainees as grave breaches of international humanitarian law. Read also: BREAKING: Ukraine, Russia hold largest prisoner swap since start of Russia's war We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Yahoo
Civilians injured in Russian shelling of Kherson
Russia shelled the city of Kherson on the morning of 20 May, injuring four civilians. Source: Kherson Oblast Military Administration; Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office on Telegram Details: Kherson Oblast Military Administration reported that Russian forces had shelled the city's Korabelnyi district in the morning. The shell struck near a residential apartment building, smashing windows and damaging the façade and balconies. The attack resulted in injuries to four civilians. A 45-year-old man and a 68-year-old woman, who were inside their home at the time, sustained blast injuries and lacerations. An 88-year-old woman sustained a blast injury, concussion and a shrapnel wound to the head. All three received medical treatment at the scene. A 76-year-old man sustained a blast injury, concussion and shrapnel wounds to the forehead and arm. He was taken to hospital in a moderate condition. The Prosecutor General's Office reported that five people were injured in the morning attack, most of whom were elderly and had been inside their homes when the shelling occurred. Background: Russian forces attacked a passenger bus in Kherson earlier in the day, injuring five people and causing significant damage to the vehicle. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Qatar Tribune
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Qatar Tribune
Human rights group Amnesty effectively banned in Russia
MoscowcTypeface:> Russia has declared the human rights group Amnesty International an undesirable organization, effectively banning its work in the country. The Prosecutor General's Office in Moscow announced on Monday that the organization was a 'centre for preparing global Russophobic projects, paid for by henchmen of the Kiev regime.' Amongst other things, the authorities accuse Amnesty of exacerbating the military confrontation in the region since the start of the war in Ukraine. Being classified as an undesirable organization is tantamount to a ban in Russia. Amnesty International is one of the world's best-known human rights groups. It repeatedly accuses Moscow of war crimes in Ukraine and of oppressing dissidents. Russia has declared numerous institutions to be undesirable organizations since it launched its war of aggression in Ukraine. (DPA)
