Ukraine Urges UN, Red Cross to Investigate Alleged POW Atrocities

Ukraine's human rights commissioner and prosecutor general have called on the International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations to investigate an image that allegedly shows a Ukrainian prisoner-of-war killed and dismembered by Russian forces. They demand urgent action to address what they describe as a severe human rights violation.

Ukraine's human rights commissioner has called on the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the United Nations to investigate a widely circulated image that allegedly depicts the killing and dismemberment of a Ukrainian prisoner-of-war by Russian forces. Dmytro Lubinets, the top human rights official in Ukraine, posted on Telegram saying that the image likely shows a Ukrainian POW with his head and limbs severed.

In response to the disturbing image, Ukraine's prosecutor general Andriy Kostin announced an urgent investigation into the matter. He condemned the act, comparing it to the crimes committed by the Nazis, highlighting Russia's repeated violations of international civil norms. Russia, meanwhile, denies any form of torture or maltreatment of POWs.

A United Nations commission of inquiry on Ukraine had previously documented credible allegations of executions and systematic torture of Ukrainian POWs by Russian forces, including threats of rape and the use of electric shocks. The commission categorized these acts as potentially amounting to crimes against humanity due to their widespread and systematic nature.

(With inputs from agencies.)