Representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) did not join the Ukrainian delegation that arrived at the contact line in Zaporizhzhya Region, the press service of the Presidential Office of Ukraine reported.
The Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets, Advisor to the Head of the Presidential Office Daria Zarivna and MPs Maria Mezentseva, Yehor Chernev, Denys Maslov and Olena Khomenko arrived at the contact line.
"Unfortunately, with each exchange, we see that the inaction of the ICRC has led to the fact that our prisoners of war and civilian hostages are tortured daily with hunger, and electricity, because the Russians know that the ICRC will not come, will not demand access to places of detention of prisoners of war and civilians, and that in general, it demonstrates its inaction," Lubinets stressed.
According to the Ombudsman, the ICRC does not fulfill its mandate, which provides for visiting military and civilian hostages both in the temporarily occupied territories and in the territory of the Russian Federation, justifying it by the lack of permission from the Russian side.
According to the Head of the Presidential Administration Andriy Yermak, Ukraine expects and demands decisiveness from the Red Cross in gaining access to Ukrainian prisoners in Olenivka.
Yermak also urged other international organizations and humanitarian activists to take active steps, as their human rights mandate should not allow them to stand by and passively watch Russia continue to commit crimes.
