Beyza Binnur Donmez
09 October 2023•Update: 09 October 2023
GENEVA
"Blatant and unabated violations of human rights" continue in Ukraine as the country's war with Russia continues, the UN's deputy high commissioner for human rights said on Monday.
Nada Al-Nashif's remarks came during an interactive dialogue about the OHCHR's findings of the periodic reports on Ukraine by the Human Rights Council in Geneva. The Council observed a moment of silence to honor the victims of Hamas attacks against Israel.
The 36th report on the human rights situation in Ukraine revealed that within a span of just six months from Feb.1 to July 31, another 4,621 civilians became victims of the conflict, with 1,028 killed and 3,593 injured, Al-Nashif said.
She noted that most of these casualties occurred in territory controlled by Ukraine, adding that the actual figures are likely higher.
The report prepared by the mission paints "a disturbing picture of civilian suffering and rights infringements," she said, adding that the arbitrary detention and incommunicado detention of civilians continued.
"Between February and July 2023, we also documented that the pattern of arbitrary detention and incommunicado detention of civilians continued in Russian-occupied territory of Ukraine, with a recorded 35 men and eight women arbitrarily detained by Russian armed forces," she said.
Since February 2022, she said, the mission documented that Russian forces arbitrarily detained almost 1,000 individuals, 85 of whom were found dead with signs of violence, and 463 still in detention.
According to Al-Nashif, six cases of arbitrary detention by Ukrainian security forces were also documented.
Russia not ensuring accountability
Referring to a new law adopted in June, which "effectively grants amnesty to Russian servicepersons for an overly broad range of crimes, reinforcing an atmosphere of impunity," Al-Nashif Russian authorities have taken "no discernible steps to ensure accountability for violations committed by their own security forces."
Ukrainian authorities, on the other hand, have launched investigations into allegations against their own forces, she said, adding that it was still imperative to see concrete results.
On the grain deal, Al-Nashif warned that "devastating long-term effects will also be felt by the collapse of the Black Sea Grain Initiative."
Following Moscow's withdrawal from the agreement, the OHCHR's mission witnessed a surge in Russian attacks impacting grain export infrastructure, she stressed.
She added that some of these attacks have led to harm to nearby civilian infrastructure and Odesa's historic landmarks. "These strikes will likely significantly affect the livelihoods of persons working in the agricultural sector, with compound effects on the right to adequate standard of living in rural communities."
The findings of the report are based on 117 field visits, 27 inspections of detention centers, 28 visits to care institutions or shelters, the observation of 23 trial hearings, six assemblies, and 1,226 interviews, according to the OHCHR.
