Russians have again shot Ukrainian soldiers who surrendered, Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets has said.
Another war crime allegedly took place in Bakhmut District on 24 February 2024. The video shows Ukrainian servicemen surrendering: their hands were raised in the air, showing that they were unarmed and did not pose a threat. The Russians were supposed to take them prisoner, but instead mercilessly shot them.
The exact number of Ukrainians executed by the Russians is not known, but there could be at least seven. They were servicemen of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
"Such an execution is a war crime! We also now know the military unit of the Russian army the soldiers who mercilessly executed the Ukrainians were from," Lubinets said.
The ombudsman noted that this case should be recorded as another violation of international humanitarian law by Russia. He will also send official letters to the UN and the ICRC to ensure that the organisations record and publicly acknowledge that the Russian military is killing Ukrainian prisoners.
"For the Russian army, the Geneva Conventions, rules and customs of war mean nothing. They act according to their own unspoken 'conventions', 'rules' and 'customs' - cruelty, meanness, and lowliness. Such killings of prisoners of war are not isolated cases. They must be punished!" the ombudsman added.