United Nations A/78/540

General Assembly Distr.: General

19 October 2023

Original: English

Seventy-eighth session
Agenda item 71 (c)
Promotion and protection of human rights:
human rights situations and reports of special
rapporteurs and representatives

Independent International Commission of Inquiry

on Ukraine*
Note by the Secretary-General

The Secretary-General has the honour to transmit to the General Assembly the
report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, submitt ed
in accordance with paragraph 19 of Human Rights Council resolution 52/32, on the
situation of human rights in Ukraine stemming from the Russian aggression.

* The present report was submitted late in order to reflect the most recent developments.

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Report of the Independent International Commission of

Inquiry on Ukraine

Summary
The present report is submitted to the General Assembly by the Independent
International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine pursuant to Human Rights Council
resolution 52/32, by which the Council renewed the Commission’s initial mandate for
one additional year.
As the armed conflict continues in its second year, it has further contributed to
suffering and hardship for thousands of affected civilians. The Commission has found
new evidence that Russian authorities have committed violations of international
human rights and international humanitarian law, and corresponding crimes, in areas
that came under their control in Ukraine. It documented additional indiscriminate
attacks by Russian armed forces, which have led to deaths and injuries of civilians
and the destruction and damage of civilian objects.
The collected evidence further shows that Russian authorities have committed
the war crimes of wilful killing, torture, rape and other sexual violence, and the
deportation of children to the Russian Federation. The Commission’s investigations
confirmed its previous finding that Russian authorities had used torture in a
widespread and systematic way in various types of detention facilities that they
maintained. Interviews with victims and witnesses illustrated a profo und disregard
towards human dignity by Russian authorities in those circumstances. The
Commission also documented cases in which Russian soldiers burst into houses of
villages that they occupied, raped women and a girl, and committed additional war
crimes against the victims and their family members.
In three cases, investigations found that Ukrainian authorities had committed
violations of human rights against persons whom they had accused of collaboration
with the Russian authorities.
The Commission is concerned at the gravity of the documented violations and
crimes and their impact on victims, survivors and the affected communities. It calls
upon the conflict parties concerned to halt war crimes and violations of human rights.
The Commission also reiterates the importance of accountability, in all its
dimensions, with full respect for the rights of and care for the victims.

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I. Introduction
1. On 4 March 2022, the Human Rights Council, by its resolution 49/1, established
an independent international commission of inquiry on Ukraine to investigate all
alleged violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international
humanitarian law, and related crimes, in the context of the Russian Federation’s
aggression against Ukraine. After the submission by the Independent International
Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine of its comprehensive report dated 15 March 2023
to the Council at its fifty-second session, 1 the Council, by its resolution 52/32,
extended the Commission’s mandate for a further period of one year.
2. Since March 2022, Erik Møse (Norway) and Pablo de Greiff (Colombia) have
been serving as members of the Commission, with Mr. Møse as Chair. After the
completion of the mandate of Jasminka Džumhur (Bosnia and Herzeg ovina), the
President of the Human Rights Council appointed, on 28 June 2023, Vrinda Grover
(India) to serve as a member of the Commission.
3. The Commission abides by the principles of independence, impartiality,
objectivity and integrity. It adopts a victim-centred approach and adheres to the “do
no harm” principle. It applies the standard of proof of “reasonable grounds to
conclude” and reaches determinations when, on the basis of a body of verified
information, an objective and ordinary prudent observer would conclude that the facts
took place as described.
4. The present report, submitted to the General Assembly at its seventy -eighth
session, as mandated by the Human Rights Council in its resolution 52/32, builds on
the Commission’s March 2023 report and its detailed conference room paper released
on 29 August 2023 (A/HRC/52/CRP.4). It outlines preliminary findings since the
renewal of its mandate. Owing to the large number of relevant events and security
and logistical constraints, the Commission focused on samples of allegations and
cases that illustrate specific patterns. In preparing the present report, it visited 32
settlements in nine regions of Ukraine, a majority in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia
Provinces, and travelled to Poland. It relied on 466 interviews with 445 persons (222
women and 223 men), inspected sites of attacks and places where detention and torture
were committed, and compiled and examined documents, photographs and videos.
5. The Commission appreciates the access and cooperation extended by the
Government of Ukraine. It regrets that its efforts to engage with the Russian
Federation proved unsuccessful. The Commission addressed to Russian officials 19
written requests for meetings, access and information, without receiving any answer.
It also consistently expressed in public an interest in establishing meaningful
communication with Russian officials.
6. The Commission expresses its gratitude for the valuable testimonies and other
information that it received from victims, witnesses, other interlocutors and
organizations.

II. Legal framework

7. International human rights law, international humanitarian law and international
criminal law constitute the law applicable to the mandate of the Commission.
8. The Russian Federation and Ukraine are party to seven and eight United Nations
core international human rights instruments, respectively. They are also bound by
__________________
1
The Commission’s report to the Human Rights Council ( A/HRC/52/62) is to be read in
conjunction with its 18 October 2022 report to the General Assembly ( A/77/533).

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various international humanitarian law instruments, including the four Geneva

Conventions of 1949. The situation in Ukraine is an international armed conflict,
pursuant to common article 2 of said Conventions. Neither Ukraine nor the Russian
Federation is a State party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
However, the Court has jurisdiction in Ukraine, pursuant to two declarations lodged
by Ukraine and referrals by States parties. The Rome Statute and its Elements of
Crimes provide detailed elements for some of the alleged crimes. Where the Court
was found to lack jurisdiction, the Commission applied the elements of crimes within
the Rome Statute so long as they reflected customary international law.

III. Background: political and military context

9. The armed conflict has continued to affect millions of persons in Ukraine, with
considerable regional and international ramifications. In 2023, armed hostilities have
been concentrated in large part on south-eastern Ukraine, in particular in Donetsk,
Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia Provinces. Early in June 2023, Ukraine launched
a counteroffensive focusing primarily on Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia Provinces. Heavy
losses have been reported on both sides.
10. Other provinces of Ukraine, further from the frontline, have also been affected
by explosive weapons hitting residential buildings and other civilian structures.
Russian armed forces continued to launch large-scale attacks targeting infrastructure
across Ukraine. Shelling of border areas in the Russian Federation an d drone attacks
deeper in the country, including in Moscow, have been reported. Ukrainian official
sources claimed responsibility for some of the attacks.
11. In the meantime, there have been no immediate prospects for an end to the armed
conflict through political and diplomatic means. At the General Assembly, many
delegates urged intensified efforts to bring both parties to the negotiating table. 2 As
the armed conflict approached the one-year mark, the Assembly, in its resolution
ES-11/6, demanded “that the Russian Federation immediately, completely and
unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within
its internationally recognized borders, and calls for a cessation of hostilities”.
12. Several States presented proposals for a settlement through diplomatic means.
The President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, and Russian officials blamed
Ukraine for rejecting talks and continued to justify the armed invasion in Ukraine
through the self-defence clause of the Charter of the United Nations. 3 More broadly,
officials of the Government of the Russian Federation further accused “the West” for
fuelling conflict in Ukraine. 4
13. The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has promoted the 10 -point
peace formula that he first outlined in November 2022. 5 During an open debate on
Ukraine held on 20 September 2023 at the Security Council, he reiterated that only
the complete withdrawal of Russian armed forces and the full restoration of Ukraine’s
__________________
2
See United Nations, “Political solution founded on international law, restoring Ukraine’s territorial
integrity, only way to end war, General Assembly President tells delegates”, 18 July 2023.
3
See President of Russia, “Meeting with heads of delegations of African States”, 17 June 2023.
Available at www.en.kremlin.ru/events/president/transcripts/71451.
4
See Ibid., “Presidential address to Federal Assembly”, 21 February 2023, avail able at
http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/70565 , and UN News, “Russian foreign minister hits
out at West’s ‘empire of lies’”, 23 September 2023.
5
See President of Ukraine, “Ukraine has always been a leader in peacemaking efforts; if Russia
wants to end this war, let it prove it with actions – speech by the President of Ukraine at the G20
Summit”, 15 November 2022. Available at www.president.gov.ua/en/news/ukrayina-zavzhdi-
bula-liderom-mirotvorchih-zusil-yaksho-rosi-79141.

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control over its territories would result in the complete cessation of the hosti lities
(S/PV.9421 p. 8).
14. The Initiative on the Safe Transportation of Grain and Foodstuffs from
Ukrainian Ports (Black Sea Initiative) was one of the few areas in which t he Russian
Federation and Ukraine had managed to reach an agreement. The Russian
Federation’s refusal to extend its participation in July 2023 was widely condemned.
15. The armed conflict has continued to have devastating consequences for the
civilian population of Ukraine. As at 10 September 2023, the Office of the United
Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights had recorded 27,149 civilian
casualties (9,614 killed and 17,535 injured). The actual number is likely higher. In
addition to 6,204,600 persons who had left the country (as at 3 October 2023),
5,088,000 are internally displaced (as of June 2023). The Office for the Coordination
of Humanitarian Affairs estimated that 17.6 million people in Ukraine were in need
of humanitarian assistance, and access for humanitarian assistance to areas affected
by the fighting has proved to be challenging. In addition to physical and psychologic al
trauma, the armed conflict has resulted in severe limitations on the enjoyment of some
of the most basic human rights.

IV. Violations of international law

16. The Commission gathered new evidence of violations of international human
rights law and international humanitarian law, and corresponding crimes committed
by the Russian authorities 6 in Ukraine. It has investigated unlawful attacks with
explosive weapons and their impact on civilians, torture, sexual and gender-based
violence, and transfers and deportations of children.
17. It found three incidents in which violations of human rights had been committed
by Ukrainian authorities 7 and is further investigating these and other allegations of
such violations.

A. Violations committed during the conduct of hostilities

18. The Commission documented additional individual attacks with explosive

weapons. It condemns again attacks that affect civilians and civilian objects,
including those in which large numbers of civilians were present.
19. It examined numerous reports of attacks in territory under the control of the
Government of Ukraine. The Commission found reasonab le grounds to conclude that
the strike of a residential building in Uman, Cherkasy Province, on 28 April 2023, as
well as strikes that affected a supermarket and a gas station in Kherson city, Kherson
Province, on 3 May 2023, were indiscriminate attacks pe rpetrated by Russian armed
forces, in violation of international humanitarian law. The attacks led to considerable
loss of civilian life, injuries and destruction. In both cases, the Commission concluded
that Russian armed forces had failed to take feasible precautions to ensure that the
objects affected were not civilian.

__________________
6
In the present report, “Russian authorities” will refer to Russian military and civilian authorities,
as well as all associated de facto authorities, armed groups, and private military and security
companies.
7
In the present report “Ukrainian authorities” will refer to Ukrai nian civilian and military
authorities, as well as all associated persons and groups.

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20. The Commission also investigated two attacks in areas that were under the
control of Russian authorities. It was unable to reach a conclusion owing to lack of
access.
21. It continued its consideration of the cumulative impact on civilians of the large -
scale attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure launched by Russian armed forces
that started on 10 October 2022.
22. Lastly, the Commission initiated investigations concerning the circumstances of
the breach at the Kakhovka dam.

1. Impact of attacks with explosive weapons

23. Attacks with explosive weapons in populated areas remained the leading cause
of deaths and injuries among the civilian population. As at 10 September 2023, the
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights estimated that
8,062 persons had been killed and 16,610 injured in such attacks. The actual number
is likely higher. The Commission visited sites of attacks and spoke with survivors.
24. In addition to the deep trauma incurred by the loss of loved ones in the aftermath
of attacks, the population has to cope with considerable challenges in securing
housing and access to essential services and supplies. During a visit to Uman, the
Commission spoke with the residents of the apartment building that had been hit by
a missile. The strike led to a high number of casualties, mainly women and children,
and substantial damage to the affected block and neighbouring buildings. Survivors
shared their traumatic experiences and the hardships that they faced owing to the
devastation caused by the attack.
25. Other examples from the Commission’s investigations also illustrate the vast
challenges in locations affected by attacks. In Dnipro, Dnipropetrovsk Prov ince, a
functioning clinic providing psychological care, including for trauma relating to the
armed conflict, was destroyed in an attack on 26 May 2023, during working hours,
and had to close. This led to the killing of 4 persons and the injury of more tha n 30
others, including patients and medical staff. The destruction of a clinic providing
psychological care to people already scarred by the conflict predictably leads to
retraumatization.
26. In Kramatorsk, Donetsk Province, a restaurant was hit on 27 Jun e 2023, during
its busiest working hour, leading to the death of at least 11 civilians, including 3 girls,
and many injuries. In Kherson city, a major retailer had to close after it was affected
by an attack on 3 May 2023, limiting the availability of places where the population
could get essential supplies. Those attacks represent only a small sample among the
multitude of situations affecting the lives of the civilian population.

2. Individual attacks with explosive weapons

27. In international humanitarian law, indiscriminate attacks are those that are not
directed at a specific military objective or employ a method or means of combat that
cannot be directed at a specific military objective or the effects of which cannot be
limited. The Commission has recently documented attacks that affected civilian
objects, such as residential buildings, a railway station, shops and a warehouse for
civilian use, leading to numerous casualties. It is further investigating attacks that hit
civilian objects.
28. Weapons employed include missiles and rockets that, when used in populated
areas, have a wide impact that can cause harm and damage to civilians and critical
infrastructure.

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29. In most incidents, the Commission has been unable to identify a military
presence in the locations affected by the attacks. It also found that, in some situations,
adequate precautions had not been taken to verify the targets. This was, for example,
the case of the above-mentioned attack on a residential building in Uman, which
struck objects that had not served a military purpose for more than two decades.

(a) Attacks with explosive weapons carried out by Russian armed forces
30. The Commission documented additional indiscriminate attacks committed by
Russian armed forces in territory controlled by the Government of Ukraine. Below
are detailed descriptions of two cases that it investigated.

Uman city, Cherkasy Province, 28 April 2023

31. On 28 April 2023, between 4.20 and 4.30 a.m., two missiles struck an apartment
building on Zakhysnykiv Ukrainy street 25 and a warehouse in Uman city, Cherkasy
Province. The attack resulted in the killing of 24 civilians (14 women, 4 men, 3 boys
and 3 girls) and the injury of many others, in the residential building affected directly
and in two neighbouring buildings. Consequently, 45 apartments became uninhabitable
and many others have been severely damaged, with shattered windows, ripped doors
and balconies, and gas and electricity cuts as a consequence of the atta ck.
32. The Commission focused its investigation on the residential building. The attack
was part of a large-scale strike with long-range missiles carried out by Russian armed
forces. Russian authorities acknowledged carrying out a large -scale strike during that
night. 8 On the basis of the available evidence, the weapon used appears to be a Kh-101
cruise missile, which Russian armed forces possess in their stockpile. These missiles
are not known to be part of the Ukrainian stockpile.
33. The Commission investigated whether the strike on the building may have been
the result of an interception by Ukrainian air defence, which may have potentially
caused the incoming missile to deviate from its course. However, on the basis of
expert analysis of available documents and other technical information obtained, the
Commission found that this was unlikely.
34. No military presence was identified in either of the areas affected by the strikes.
According to residents’ accounts and reviewed documents, more than 20 year s ago
the warehouse served as a military maintenance base, whereas the apartment building
was a dormitory for civilians and military working there. Both were hit within a few
minutes of each other. The residential building was privatized around 2002 and, a t the
time of the attack, was a civilian object with more than 99 apartments.
35. The Commission concluded that Russian armed forces, in violation of
international humanitarian law, had conducted an indiscriminate attack on a
residential building in Uman city and failed to take feasible precautions to ensure that
the objective was not civilian.

Kherson city, Kherson Province, 3 May 2023

36. On 3 May 2023, starting at 10 a.m., a succession of attacks with explosive
weapons took place over the course of several hours and struck various locations in
Kherson city, including an ATB supermarket, an OKKO gas station, the railway
station, an Epicentr hypermarket and a residential building. Ukrainian authorities

__________________
8
Russian Federation, Ministry of Defence, “Report on the progress of the special military
operation in Ukraine”, 28 April 2023, available at https://india.mid.ru/en/news/updates_from_
the_russian_defence_ministry_april_24_30_2023; see also Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “Briefing
by Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, Moscow”, 3 May 2023.

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recorded casualties at 10 impact sites in Kherson city and its surroundings, with 21
civilians killed (12 men and 9 women) and dozens injured.
37. The Commission focused its investigations on three of the impacted sites,
namely, the ATB supermarket, the OKKO gas station and the railway station. On the
basis of witness statements and an analysis of photographs and videos of weapon
remnants, it determined that the three sites had been hit with rocket artillery systems.
Photographs taken in the aftermath of the strikes at the ATB supermarket and at the
OKKO gas station showed remnants that appear to be BM-21 MLRS Grad rockets.
38. No military presence was identified at the locations hit. Witness declarations,
an analysis of the position of remnants and of the damage at the ATB supermarket and
the OKKO gas station indicated that the strikes had come from a southern direction.
A similar analysis of the impact site at the railway station led the Commission to
assess that the strike had come from a likely southern direction. The left bank of the
Dnipro River in the Kherson city area was under the control of Russian armed forces
at the time of the attack, within striking distance of the BM -21 MLRS Grad missile
system.
39. The Commission concluded that Russian armed forces had carried out
indiscriminate attacks on the ATB supermarket and the OKKO gas station, had likely
also carried out the attack that hit the railway station, all in Kherson city, and had
failed to take precautions to verify that the objectives were not civilian.

(b) Attacks carried out in areas under the control of Russian authorities
40. The Commission investigated two reported incidents with the use of explosive
weapons in areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk Provinces that are under the control of
Russian authorities. It sent requests for information to both parties to the armed
conflict and did not receive a response from the Russian Federation. Two previous
requests for access to the Russian-appointed authorities of the so-called Donetsk and
Luhansk People’s Republics have remained unanswered.
41. According to media reports, on 28 January 2023 an attack struck the Novoaidar
general hospital in Novoaidar, Luhansk Province, leading to the death of 14 persons
and the injury of many others. One institution from the Russian Federation informed
the Commission of the attack. It reviewed publicly available photographs and videos
of the damage and confirmed that these showed the Novoaidar general hospital.
Satellite imagery also confirmed damage to one wing of the hospital. Information
available suggests that the hospital was functional at the time of the incident. The
Ukrainian authorities informed the Commission that they had opened a pretrial
investigation into the shelling.
42. In addition, the Commission examined information that appeared from January
to April 2023 on social media concerning incidents involving anti-personnel high-
explosive landmines known as “PFM-1” or “butterfly mines”, in two western suburbs
of Donetsk city. In total, 11 injuries were reported. One Russian institution shared
information about injuries in March and April 2023. The locations concerned are in
two populated areas west of Donetsk city, close to the line of contact, where heavy
fighting took place at that time.
43. The Commission has been unable to proceed with its investiga tion of both
situations because it has no access to the relevant areas. It recommends further
investigations and reiterates the importance of access to pursue all investigations
required pursuant to its mandate.

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3. Impact of the attacks on the energy infrastructure of Ukraine

44. In a previous report, the Commission had expressed concern at the impact on
civilians of the large-scale waves of attacks on energy infrastructure launched by the
Russian armed forces starting on 10 October 2022 ( A/HRC/52/62, paras. 40–43). It
is examining in further detail the consequences of the attacks for the civilian
population. Prevalent during the colder months, the attacks hit electricity -related
installations, causing temporary outages, which sometimes affected millions of people.
These, in turn, resulted in electricity, heating and water cuts, with consequences for
the operation of services.
45. From the Commission’s interviews, Kyiv and Odesa were among the provinces
particularly hit. Two residents of Odesa reported recurrent power outages, of up to
three days, during the winter. Owing to the scarcity of power, at times electricity
supply was available only during pre-established and limited periods of time.
Reportedly, persons living on higher floors had challenges with water supply. Those
requiring constant medical treatment with electric devices faced specific difficulties.
Persons who were older or had disabilities were particularly v ulnerable, with some of
them confined in their apartments without power. Social workers also had to cope
with difficult working conditions in the absence of electricity.
46. These are only some of the most obvious and immediate consequences of the
attacks. The Commission will continue its investigations.

4. Impact of the breach at Khakovka dam

47. The Commission is investigating the cause of the breach at the Kakhovka dam
on 6 June 2023. The discharge of water and flooding caused by the breach had
detrimental consequences for the fulfilment of basic human rights of the population
in the affected area and triggered additional displacement. The floods caused loss of
lives and a threat to the health of the population. According to the most recent
information received from the Government of Ukraine in the aftermath of the events,
33 persons died, 28 were injured and more than 40 persons were missing. The Russian
Federation did not respond to the Commission’s questions regarding the impact of the
breach on the areas that are under its control. The floods led to the destruction and
damage of houses and other buildings and to challenges in gaining access to potable
water, food and basic services. Several persons from the localities concerned stated
that they were forced to flee because the water had reached their properties. The
breach is also expected to have a long-term harmful impact on the economy and the
ecology of the region. The Commission will further investigate its short - and long-
term consequences.

B. Personal integrity violations

1. Torture committed by Russian authorities
48. In its report to the Human Rights Council, the Commission found that torture
was widely used by Russian authorities in seven provinces of Ukraine and in the
Russian Federation and detailed how it was practiced in detention facilities (ibid.,
paras. 71–77). During its second mandate, the Commission has continued to
document the use of torture against numerous persons in additional detention centres
in Ukraine. It had focused on areas of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia Provinces, which
were controlled by Russian authorities for long periods of time. The new evidence is
consistent with and reinforces the Commission’s previous finding that the Russian
authorities’ use of torture was widespread and systematic.

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49. In the cases investigated, perpetrators tortured mainly persons whom they
accused of passing information to the Ukrainian authorities or of otherwise supporting
the Ukrainian armed forces. Victims were men and women of age s ranging from 29
to 57. Russian authorities, in general, committed torture during interrogation sessions.
Often held repeatedly, these were aimed mostly at extracting information from the
victims. Former detainees reported the existence of rooms allocated specifically to
interrogation and torture. Consistent with its previous conclusions, the Commission
found that similar methods of torture had been used across various detention facilities
that it examined.
50. The use of torture in additional detention facilities across Ukraine confirms the
Commission’s previous finding that it was widespread. The targeting of specific
categories of persons, combined with common elements in the purpose of
interrogation sessions and the way in which torture was practised, led the Commission
to further conclude that its use was systematic.
51. Victims of torture recounted how severe physical and mental pain and suffering
was inflicted upon them during confinement and interrogation. Torture often led to
long-term physical and psychological trauma for the victims and their loved ones. A
victim who had been subjected to electric shocks stated, “Every time I answered that
I didn’t know or didn’t remember something, they gave me electric shocks … I don’t
know how long it lasted. It felt like an eternity”. The victim reported not being able
to walk properly for days and suffering from deep anxiety in the aftermath. The
husband of a victim, confined in a neighbouring cell while she was tortured, said, “I
will never forget her screaming of pain”.
52. The testimonies collected by the Commission show the perpetrators’ profound
disregard for the life and the dignity of the victims. Witnesses reported situations in
which torture had been committed with such brutality that it led to death. I n a
detention facility in a school in Biliayivka village, Kherson Province, co -detainees
requested medical care when a victim presented signs of respiratory distress
immediately after being tortured. However, Russian armed forces refused, and the
victim died less than one hour later. The Commission found in that case that, in
addition to torture, the conduct of the perpetrators amounted to unlawful killing. In
the same facility, another detainee died in the cell, apparently as a consequence of
torture, dehydration and hunger. One day later, Russian soldiers dragged his body out
of the cell by the feet. In this case, the Commission concluded that, in addition to
torture, Russian armed forces had violated the victim’s right to life and caused his
death by way of torture, ill-treatment and inhuman conditions.
53. Several victims and witnesses stated that interrogation sessions and torture had
been conducted by personnel of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation. 9
One victim, formerly detained in the police department of Nova Kakhovka city,
Kherson Province, noted, “Everyone in that detention facility knew that whenever the
white-coloured bus of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation arrived,
it meant that people would be tortured”. Victims also reported that interrogations and
torture had been committed by Russian armed forces, personnel of the National Guard
of Russia, 10 soldiers of the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic and personnel of the
Wagner Group.

__________________
9
The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation is a federal executive body with the
authority to implement government policy in the national security of the Russian Federation.
10
The National Guard of the Russian Federation, referred to as Rosgvardiya, is an internal military
force of the Russian Federation.

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Detention facilities
54. The Commission documented additional detention facilities in which Russian
authorities routinely used torture (A/HRC/52/CRP.4, paras. 534–566). Some of these
were improvised, for example, in schools or in a kindergarten, while ot hers were held
in established structures, such as police and penitentiary centres. Among the detention
facilities investigated were a school in Biliayivka village and the police department
in Nova Kakhovka city, both in Kherson Province, and the police dep artment and
Prymorsk correctional facility No. 145, both in Berdiansk city, in Zaporizhzhia
Province. The Commission found that inhuman conditions and the use of torture were
prevalent in all.
55. Several victims mentioned the existence of “torture rooms” or “interrogation
rooms”. One witness described how he was brought to a room where he saw tools
apparently used for torture; he mentioned pliers, knives, saws, cutters and a metal
device with wires for electrocution.
56. In the majority of cases, detainees were held in inhuman conditions, confirming
a previous pattern identified by the Commission ( A/HRC/52/62, para. 64). Many of
the detention periods were prolonged, with some lasting more than 100 days. The
cells were small and frequently overcrowded, with no windows and, therefore,
insufficient ventilation and no light. According to former detainees, in some cases
victims were not provided with food or water, or were given i nsufficient quantities,
to the point that some of them drank water from the pipes of the radiator or their own
urine and suffered from severe weight loss. Some had no access to toilets and used a
bottle or a bucket or dug a ditch.
57. The Commission noted situations in which detainees were unlawfully transferred
to one or more detention facilities after initial detention. It investigated cases in which
torture was used in at least one of those locations. This was the case, for example, of
two victims detained briefly in a makeshift facility in a kindergarten, then transferred
for approximately one week to a detention centre in the school of Biliayivka village,
where they were tortured, subsequently transferred for one day to a detention facility
in a medical institution in another village, and finally detained for one -and-a-half
months in the police department in Nova Kakhovka city, all in Kherson Province (see
para. 54 above). Some victims were ill-treated or tortured in several of the facilities
in which they were detained.

Targeting of specific categories of persons

58. Russian authorities used torture principally against persons whom they suspected
of providing any form of support to the Ukrainian authorities. Others were tortured
after they were found to be holding pro-Ukrainian or anti-Russian views or if they
refused to cooperate with Russian authorities. One of the victims was a public official,
tortured in order to coerce him into cooperating.
59. The majority of victims were men. In some of the cases documented in rural
areas, victims stayed behind to take care of their older relatives and properties as their
families fled to safer areas.
60. According to victims and witnesses, many of the victims of torture were
confined initially after Russian authorities had found content deemed suspicious on
their phones. In some cases, the identification of some types of tattoos led to torture.
Some victims of torture had been confined during house searches. In some instances,
perpetrators appeared to have been actively looking for specific individuals, for
example, after a tip-off by local residents cooperating with Russian authorities. In two
cases, victims reported that perpetrators stormed their houses with the apparent aim
of detaining them.

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61. Some of the victims admitted that they supported Ukrainian armed forces.
However, regardless of whether this was the case, international law prohibits torture
in all circumstances. 11

Interrogation sessions and torture methods

62. In detention facilities, perpetrators, in general, used torture during interrogation.
Some of the victims had to undergo repeated sessions of interrogation and torture.
According to victims and witnesses, interrogation was aimed mainly at extracting
information but was also used to force the victims to cooperate with the occupying
authorities, or as a punishment. Perpetrators, for example, requested victims to reveal
details about their purported cooperation with Ukrainian armed forces or about the
latter’s positions and plans. Some victims outlined how torture continued, regardless
of the answers provided. A victim stated, “It was so painful … I thought I would die
there. It was lasting for two hours. I kept saying ‘Boys, I don’t know why you are
doing that; I don’t know anything’”. A man, who was severely beaten together with
another detainee, said, “No matter what [we] responded, the man was beating [us].”
63. Perpetrators often blindfolded the victims with a hood, bag or tape, handcuffed
their hands behind their backs or tied them with rope and tied their legs.
64. With regard to torture methods, the Commission documented severe beatings in
all detention facilities that it examined. According to witness accounts, these were
carried out using a variety of objects, such as batons, bats, rifle butts, a machine gun,
a wooden hammer and a plastic pipe. Perpetrators also hit the victims with their knees
and feet. Two victims stated that they were lying face down on the floor during
beatings. One woman told the Commission that she lost her teeth after the soldiers
had banged her head against the wall. A former detainee recounted that, during a
session in which he was beaten heavily, together with his friend, the perpetrator asked
them to choose “which … of the knees they were ready to sacrifice”.
65. The Commission had found previously that the administering of electric shocks
with the use of a military field phone called “Tapik”, referred to, among other terms,
as a “call to Putin”, was used by Russian authorities in several detention facilities
(ibid., para. 75). The Commission’s further investigations confirmed that the use of
electric shocks was prevalent in the more established detention f acilities that it
investigated. In some cases, the same victim was subjected repeatedly to electric
shocks. Victims reported that perpetrators had connected wires or clamps to earlobes,
ankles, hands, toes or genitals. Some perpetrators referred to this me thod as a “call to
Stalin” or a “ride on a tram”. According to victims, in some cases water was poured
on them or otherwise used to amplify the effect of electric shocks. A woman who
endured the electric shocks stated, “It was so painful that I could not s top screaming
like crazy, I was crying”. Her co-detainee described that, as a consequence, the victim
could barely walk and was “lying for a day as she could not move”. A man explained
that, during torture through electric shocks, his teeth bit the insides of his cheeks and
tongue. His co-detainee confirmed that the victim could not eat owing to an injured
tongue.
66. The Commission received reports regarding other methods of torture, which
have not been used consistently but were mentioned in relation to o ne or several
facilities. These included mock executions, placing a victim’s head in a barrel of
water, called “drowning”, the slashing on various parts of the body, depriving
detainees of their sleep, forcing a victim to inhale or the injecting of an unkn own
substance. Two victims died after the latter two practices.
__________________
11
For example, Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions, art. 75 (2) (a) (ii), and Convention
against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, art. 2.

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67. Victims also shared accounts concerning the use of derogatory terms, including
of a sexual nature, psychological pressure and threats. In some cases, perpetrators
called the victims “Nazis”. One perpetrator called the victim derogatory names,
including “Nazi”, and said that “such people should be killed”. Some of the former
detainees were forced to learn by heart and sing the Russian anthem. Others had to
make declarations on video, including self-incriminating statements or negative
utterances against President Zelenskyy. Victims reported threats to the life of their
loved ones.
68. The Commission is investigating allegations of rape committed during
detention. Several former detainees, men and women, reported threats of rape and
other sexual violence against themselves and their families and loved ones. For
example, a young woman stated that, during interrogation, a Russian authority warned
that, if she did not reveal names of informants of Ukrainian armed forces, he would
bring 20 to 30 men to rape her. A man was told that his fiancée would be gang -raped
if he did not provide the required information. One former male detainee received
threats to be thrown among regular prisoners, who would rape him. Another former
detainee mentioned threats of having his genitals cut off.
69. Victims and witnesses shared accounts regarding the profound impact that
torture had on them, their families and their environment. One illustration from recent
investigations includes a case in which torture had the immediate effect of worsening
a chronic medical condition from which a woman was suffering and of which the
perpetrators were aware. Co-detainees requested a doctor for the victim, but, given
the circumstances, the doctor was unable to help her. In addition to the physical
trauma, torture has led to long-term psychological suffering and distress. One victim
reported that he had attempted suicide twice while in detention, including during a
“drowning” session. Another victim committed suicide several months after his
detention and torture. His family, devastated by the loss, stated that he could not cope
with the psychological impact of what he had gone through.

2. Arbitrary arrest, detention and ill-treatment of alleged collaborators by

Ukrainian authorities
70. In its previous report, the Commission recommended further investigations into
allegations concerning the treatment of alleged collaborators 12 by Ukrainian authorities
(A/HRC/52/62, paras. 87–89). Since then, it has documented three such cases: two in
March 2022 and a third in March 2023. The victims were men. On the basis of the
available information for each incident, the Commission found that, in all three cases,
the victims had been arrested arbitrarily, that, in two of the cases, the detention was
also arbitrary and that, in one of the cases, the detention was incommunicado. The
Commission concluded that, in at least one case, torture had been used against the
victim. It continues to investigate additional allegations regarding these incidents, as
well as other cases.
71. In one of the cases, on 2 March 2022 in Kyiv Province, a man reported that
approximately 10 armed men in camouflage uniform and masks arrested him in the
staircase of his apartment building, handcuffed him and searched his flat. According
to the victim, on the same day the perpetrators brought him to the main building of
the Security Service of Ukraine in Kyiv city and further detained and interrogated
him there. The protocol of arrest was made on 4 March 2022. There is no material to
suggest that the victim was advised of the basis of the arrest and charges brought

__________________
12
Alleged collaborators may be charged under various articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine,
such as articles 111, 111-1 and/or 111-2.

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against him before that date. The Commission therefore concluded that the arrest and
the detention, at least from 2 to 4 March 2022, were arbitrary.
72. In another case, on 4 March 2022, also in Kyiv Province, a man was arrested by
at least eight men dressed in camouflage uniforms. They brought him to the premises
of the Security Service of Ukraine in Kyiv city and detained him there, without
allowing him to communicate with the outside world. On 14 March 2022, the arrest
and the detention were recognized officially. The Comm ission found that, from 4 to
14 March 2022, the arrest and the detention of the victim were arbitrary and that the
detention was incommunicado.
73. On 23 March 2023, in Odesa Province, four men in camouflage uniforms and
masks arrested a man on the street, handcuffed him and put him in their vehicle. They
kicked him and beat him with a rifle butt while asking him to confess that he was a
spy. He suffered at least two broken ribs as a consequence of the beating.
Subsequently, they drove the victim to his house, where they handed him over to two
men who introduced themselves as members of the Security Service of Ukraine and
conducted a search. They later brought him to the premises of the Security Service of
Ukraine in Odesa city. The victim reported that he was requested to sign documents
and threatened with further beatings in case of refusal. The Commission found, in that
case, that the perpetrators had committed torture and arrested the victim arbitrarily,
in violation of international human rights law.

C. Sexual and gender-based violence

74. The Commission had previously documented cases of sexual and gender-based
violence committed by Russian authorities in nine provinces of Ukraine and in the
Russian Federation (ibid., paras. 78–85). It focused its recent investigations on
Kherson and Zaporizhzhia Provinces and found evidence that Russian authorities had
committed rape and sexual violence in a district of Kherson Province. Rape and
sexual and gender-based violence constitute crimes and violations of human rights
and were often committed with additional crimes and other grave human rights
violations.
75. The cases of rape documented occurred between March and July 2022, in small
villages in Kherson Province mostly during Russian authorities’ incursions in the
homes of the victims. Some took place in the same village. Other reported situations
of sexual violence or threats thereof occurred in detention facilities maintained by
Russian authorities (see para. 68 above).
76. In the cases investigated, the victims of rape were a 16-year-old girl and women
aged from 19 to 83. Most of them were in a vulnerable situation. One of the victims
was a 16-year-old pregnant girl, three were older women and some were living alone
or with young children, or with a family member living with a disability. The victims
were among the women who had remained in their villages when Russian armed
forces took control of the area, while many had fled, to care for relatives who were
older or lived with a disability or to look after their belongings or because they could
not flee.
77. The documented cases of rape were perpetrated with the use of force or
psychological coercion. Most of the incidents occurred after the perpetrators had
broken into the victims’ homes. Victims reported rapes at gunpoint and threats of
killing or of inflicting other serious harm to the victims or their relatives. In some
instances, perpetrators had visited the victims’ houses before the crime, including on
several occasions, and displayed abusive behaviour.

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78. In some cases, the same perpetrator raped the victim two or more times. In two
cases, perpetrators gang-raped the victims. One of the victims and her husband were
shot dead by Russian soldiers after they had reported the rape.
79. Perpetrators committed additional acts of violence against the victims of rape,
including severe beatings, strangling, suffocating, slashing and shooting next to the
victim’s head. Most of these acts are in themselves crimes and violations of human
rights, in addition to sexual and gender-based violence. In several cases, the
Commission concluded that those acts amounted to torture.
80. In a number of cases, family members were present when the rape took place.
There are instances in which perpetrators also committed crimes and violations
against them, including killing, attempted killing and torture.
81. Victims stated that the crimes and violations had been committed by Russian
soldiers and, in some cases, specified that perpetrators belonged to units from the
so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics. Some perpetrators were
intoxicated. In two separate cases, victims named the same perpetrator. In several
cases, the behaviour displayed by the perpetrators suggested that they did not fear
accountability. This is illustrated, for example, by repeated visits to the houses of the
victims and by the multiple threats and violations committed against them and their
family members. One victim stated that, when Russian soldiers deployed to their
village, they first enquired about women living alone. One victim of rape reported
that, after one soldier raped her, he was drinking on her terrace together with fellow
soldiers and greeted her the next day. One witness of rape reported that, while a
soldier was raping her pregnant daughter, he said: “It’s not scary, everyone does it”.
However, the interviews of the Commission also showed that other soldiers behaved
differently and that, in a small number of cases, superiors took action against those
committing rape or fellow soldiers attempted to stop the perpetrators or to assist the
victim.

Case descriptions
82. The Commission describes in detail below a few of the cases of rape and sexual
violence committed by Russian armed forces during house visits in Kherson Province .
83. In March 2022, a Russian soldier came to the house of an 83 -year-old woman
and forced her to open the door. He questioned her on whether she knew persons who
cooperated with the Ukrainian armed forces and beat her with his rifle. The soldier
ordered her to undress, raped her and continued to rape and beat her for several hours.
He threatened to rape the woman’s husband, who lived with a disability and was
present in the house. The soldier stole some belongings. The Commission found that,
in addition to rape, the war crime of torture had been committed against the victim.
84. In March and April 2022, several groups of Russian soldiers visited the house
and the shop of a married couple on multiple occasions. The victim reported that the
soldiers looted, forced her to cook for them, took showers and slept in her house.
During one visit in April 2022, Russian soldiers locked the husband in a room. One
soldier threatened to kill the 59-year-old woman and sexually harassed her, while he
reloaded his rifle repeatedly. Later in April 2022, three Russian soldiers broke into
the house at night and shot at the husband but missed. Two of the soldiers beat the
woman with their pistols and kicked her, threatened to shoot her, ripped off her clothes
and gang-raped her. She attempted to escape, but they caught her, dragged her into
the house and raped her again. The Commission found that, in addition to rape, torture
had been used against her and attempted wilful killing had been committed against
her husband.

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85. In May 2022, three Russian soldiers came to the house of a married couple who
had stayed behind to look after the grandmother. They beat the 52 -year-old man and
all three perpetrators raped the 50-year-old woman in turns. The couple reported the
rape to the Russian armed forces commander. Neighbours recounted that, after this,
three different soldiers “were looking for a woman who reported the rape”, went to
the couple’s house and shot dead both of them. The Commission found that, in
addition to the rape of the woman, the war crimes of wilful killing and torture had
also been committed against both victims.
86. In July 2022, a Russian soldier came to the house of a 75-year-old woman, where
she stayed alone to protect her property. The soldier attacked her, hit her on her face,
chest and ribs and strangled her as he was interrogating her. He ordered her to undress
and when she refused, he ripped off her clothes, cut her abdomen with a small sharp
object and raped her several times. The next morning, he raped her and beat her again.
The victim had several broken ribs and teeth knocked out as a result. The Commission
found that, in addition to rape, the war crime of torture had also been committed
against the victim.
87. These and other cases took place in a context of multiple forms of violence
experienced by the victims and their families. Fear, trauma, physical and psychological
harm, and damage to livelihoods are experienced in parallel, as evidenced in victims’
accounts. These factors contributed to accentuating th e vulnerability of the victims.
For example, a woman who lived alone with her children reported that, after Russian
authorities had taken control of the village, she felt compelled to move in with a man
in order to seek safety. Taking advantage of the situ ation, he mistreated the children,
took the social aid that she was receiving and aided her rape by Russian soldiers.
88. The crimes documented have severe and long-term consequences for the
physical and mental health of the victims and are highly traumati zing for their family
members. The victims were residents of small villages. In proximity to the front line,
medical help was not easily available. Some victims reported that they suffered from
shame and stigma and appeared to blame themselves.
89. One victim, describing how she felt after the crime, stated, “I am scared all the
time. I forgot what normal sleeping means. My husband felt worse since that day. I
am afraid of everyone, when police officers came and I was reporting the incident to
them, I was shaking. I realized I am afraid of men in uniforms. I don’t know how to
look people in the eyes”. Another victim, after telling how she had attempted to flee,
as two perpetrators were raping her, shared that she was “hoping for a rifle shot, so
that she would not suffer anymore”. She also stated, “I just don’t know why I deserved
it, what did I do to survive that?”

D. Transfers and deportations of children

90. In its report to the Human Rights Council, the Commission identified three main
situations in which Russian authorities had transferred Ukrainian unaccompanied
children from one area that they controlled in Ukraine to another or to the Russian
Federation. Transfers affected children who had lost parents or contact with them
during hostilities, who were separated following the detention of a parent, and who
were in institutions (ibid., para. 97). It found that, in some of the cases that it
investigated, such transfers had occurred in violation of international humanitarian
law and qualified as unlawful transfers or deportations, which is a war crime.
91. The Commission investigated further reports regarding transfers of
unaccompanied children by Russian authorities to the Russian Federation or to areas
that they occupied in Ukraine. Notably, it documented the transfer of 31 children from

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Ukraine to the Russian Federation in May 2022 and concluded that it was an unlawful
deportation and a war crime (see paras. 98–99 below).
92. It is stated in international humanitarian law that no party to the conflict shall
arrange for the evacuation of children, other than its own nationals, to a foreign
country except for a temporary evacuation where compelling reasons of the health or
medical treatment of the children or, except in occupied territory, their safety s o
require. The written consent of parents or legal guardians is required, and, if they
cannot be found, of the persons primarily responsible for the care of the children. 13
93. Gaining an understanding of the larger extent of transfers of unaccompanied
children that may be in violation of the requirements set forth under international
humanitarian law has proved to be challenging with the information and data
presently available. One factor that appears as a source of confusion is the fact that a
variety of distinct situations concerning children have been considered together. The
Russian Federation and Ukraine have publicized different figures concerning the
scale of transfers of children from Ukraine since the outset of the armed conflict in
2022. In Ukraine, interlocutors from government agencies appeared to have diverse
approaches concerning this issue. The official website maintained by the Government
of Ukraine as “the only platform that provides up -to-date, consolidated information”
on children who suffer as a result of the armed conflict recorded 19,546 “deported
and/or forcibly displaced persons” as at the end of September 2023. 14 Two Ukrainian
government officials clarified that this included figures of children who had crossed
the border to the Russian Federation together with parents. One official stated that
children sent voluntarily by their parents to summer camps were included in this
figure. Two non-governmental organizations monitoring the issue also noted that the
figure comprised various categories of children, including those who had not been
separated from their parents. Those interlocutors also highlighted risks of duplication
of some cases.
94. Furthermore, the Commission has been unable to find reliable data from the
Russian Federation about transfers of children. It took note of public information. For
example, in 2023, a bulletin issued by the office of the Russian Commissioner for
Children’s Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, reported that, from April to October 2022,
380 orphan children from the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics had
been transferred and placed in foster families in the Russian Federation. 15 The same
document noted that some 2,000 orphans and children left without parental care living
in boarding institutions in the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics had
been transferred to the Russian Federation in February 2022. It was further stated that,
among those children, those from the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic were
placed in foster care or in institutions. 16
95. The Commission is concerned at reports regarding measures that have the
apparent aim of allowing some children to remain for prolonged periods in the
Russian Federation. It has reviewed information regarding the placement of children
in foster families in the Russian Federation, including the above -mentioned bulletin,
interviews with family members or legal representatives of children in such
situations, and media coverage.
96. Ukrainian government officials undertook initiatives to facilitate the return and
reunification of some children separated from their parents or relatives, and Russian
__________________
13
Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions, art. 78(1).
14
See https://childrenofwar.gov.ua/.
15
See Maria Lvova-Belova, “Activities of the Russian Federation Presidential Commissioner for
Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova to protect children during a special military operation”,
The Bulletin, Issue No. 1, 4 April 2023. (2023).
16
Ibid.

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officials reportedly cooperated in some cases. However, as of the end September

2023, there was no mechanism for the return of transferred children in place between
both States. On 23 September 2023, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Russian
Federation, Sergey Lavrov, stated, “If those families are found, we will assist with
the reunification of those children”. 17 In addition, it was noted in the above-mentioned
bulletin that, if a child “has a parent with full parental rights, the family has every
opportunity to be reunited”. 18 However, apart from a few examples, the Commission
has not been informed of Russian initiatives to proactively facilitate all returns. It has,
to date, received information regarding returns that took place on an individual basis,
at the initiative of parents, legal guardians or of children themselves, with the support
of Ukrainian authorities, private organizations and other initiatives. This often entails
risky, very complicated and costly travel through several countries.
97. As outlined above, transfers of children to Russian-occupied areas and across
the border to the Russian Federation have occurred in a variety of situations. A well -
functioning return process should be oriented around the best interests of the child
and should consider the circumstances of each situation. However, in the absence of
a rigorous recording and verification system, clarity cannot be shed on the true extent
of transfers of children in each situation. The lack of clarity and transparency
regarding the circumstances and categories of children transferred is an impediment
to a well-functioning return process. Moreover, to aid the reunification of children
transferred at a young age, it would be prudent to establish a DNA bank with samples
from parents or relatives.

Individual situations of deportations of children

98. The Commission has continued to document individual cases concerning the
transfers of children to the Russian Federation. One of these concerns the transfer, on
27 May 2022, by Russian authorities of 31 children from the children’s social centre
of the administration of Donetsk city, Donetsk Province, to the Russian Federation.
The children included 16 boys and 15 girls from 7 to 17 years of age. They had been
in a variety of situations prior to their accommodation in the centre. Some of them
were orphans or deprived of parental care and were in State institutions, while others
had lost contact with their parents or foster parents owing to the ongoing hostilities.
In an official document obtained by the Commission, it was stated that the transfer
had been authorized for “recreational” purposes and was to be carried out temporarily,
until 27 June 2022. Consent had been given by the acting director of the centre
appointed by the occupying authorities. In the Russia n Federation, the children were
accommodated in the Polyany boarding house in the Moscow region.
99. From information collected by the Commission, apart from three children who
had been brought back by their father, it appears that most of those children r emained
in the Russian Federation beyond the one-month period. According to a witness
testimony and media coverage, after having spent several months in the Russian
Federation, including in a foster family, one additional boy managed to return on his
own to Ukraine, through Belarus. One boy from that group of children was placed in
Ms. Lvova-Belova’s family. On 21 September 2022, Ms. Lvova-Belova stated
publicly that the boy had been given a Russian passport and that he was now “ours”,
showing an apparent intention to keep him in the Russian Federation on a long-term
basis. In a bulletin issued by her office in 2023, Ms. Lvova -Belova further stated that
6 children of that group had been placed in family centres, and almost all of them,
subsequently, in foster families, and that 22 had been placed in provisional

__________________
17
See UN Web TV, “Press conference: H.E. Mr. Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the
Russian Federation”, 23 September 2023.4
18
See Lvova-Belova, “Activities of the Russian Federation Presidential Commissioner”.

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guardianship by residents of the Moscow region. 19 These combined elements are in

contravention of the legal requirement that evacuations of children should be
temporary, and the transfer of the children therefore amounts to an unlawful
deportation, which is a war crime.

Conditions in which children were held in camps

100. The Commission examined reports that, in some situations in which children
from Ukraine had been sent to camps in Crimea with prior authorization of their
parents, conditions in which they were held were inadequate. One example concerns
a family from Kherson city, which agreed to send three siblings to a camp in Crimea
in October 2022, for three weeks. However, owing to frontline developments and
evacuations carried out by Russian authorities from Kherson city, the children were
instead relocated to a different camp in Crimea, where they remained for six months.
One of the children, a 15-year-old girl, told the Commission that, during their stay
there, camp personnel had decided to send her 10 -year-old brother to a psychiatric
hospital in Crimea as a punishment following a quarrel with another child and after
he “was crying because he missed his mother”, separating him from his two other
siblings who were in the camp.
101. Three teenage children who had stayed in such camps in Crimea reported
separately to the Commission that staff of the camp placed children in a room called
an “isolator” if they considered that the children misbehaved. For example, a 16-year-
old boy stated that camp staff placed him, together with two other children, in the
“isolator” for four days after they had overheard the children listening to the
Ukrainian anthem. A 17-year-old boy mentioned that he was “locked up” for five days
after he had removed a Russian flag.
102. Children who had stayed in camps in Crimea also reported distress after camp
personnel had told them that they would be placed in a children’s home or in foster
families. One 16-year-old girl reported that a teacher had hit her and said, “I can put
you in a foster family and your mother wouldn ’t find you; you would be homeless
and beg for food”. Children reported being required to sing the Russian anthem and
to write letters to Russian soldiers. One girl noted that children from Kherson
Province were bullied and told to go back to their “fascist country”. The mother of a
16-year-old boy, whose time in a similar camp in Crimea was also prolonged owing
to frontline developments, stated that he was transferred to a village under Russian
control in Kherson Province and told by the teachers there that “soon they would be
given arms and would be standing at checkpoints”.

V. Conclusions and recommendations

103. During its second mandate, the Commission found evidence showing that
Russian authorities had continued to commit numerous violations of
international human rights law and international humanitarian law in the
context of their armed aggression in Ukraine. It concluded, among others, tha t
Russian authorities had committed indiscriminate attacks against civilians and
the war crimes of torture, wilful killing, rape and other sexual violence, and
deportation of children, which are also violations of human rights. It has received
numerous other allegations, and its investigations are continuing.

__________________
19
Ibid.

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104. The Commission also documented three cases in which Ukrainian

authorities had committed human rights violations against persons whom they
accused of collaborating with Russian authorities.
105. This armed conflict, as with all others, continues to leave in its wake
considerable physical and mental trauma. The population faces hardship
following the loss of lives, injuries and the destruction and devastation caused by
the conflict. The Commission further documented the impact on the civilian
population of violations and events relating to the conflict. This is notably the
case of the large-scale attacks against Ukraine’s infrastructure carried out by
Russian armed forces and of individual attacks affecting civilian objects.
106. Lastly, the Commission strongly condemns violations and corresponding
crimes. Similar to its previous reports, it reiterates the paramount importance of
ensuring that perpetrators are held accountable. In addition to judicial
measures, it also emphasizes the importance of other dimensions of
accountability, including truth, reparations and guarantees of non-recurrence.
107. The Commission considers that the recommendations that it made in its
report to the Human Rights Council remain relevant to a very large extent
(A/HRC/52/62, paras. 112–115). Accordingly, it reiterates them and makes
additional recommendations, following its latest investigations, to strengthen
accountability and for the prevention of further violations.
108. The Commission recommends that the parties to the conflict:
(a) Ensure the timely, effective, thorough, independent, impartial and
transparent investigation and prosecution of all allegations of international
crimes, violations of international human rights law and international
humanitarian law, including sexual and gender-based violence and violence
against children;
(b) Ratify international instruments to which they are not yet party and
that will strengthen the protection of civilians in armed conflict.
109. The Commission recommends that the Russian Federation immediately:
(a) Cease aggression and all acts of violence committed against civilians
in violation of applicable international human rights and international
humanitarian law and end the use of torture, sexual and gender-based violence,
and other forms of ill-treatment;
(b) Take all feasible precautions to protect civilians and civilian
infrastructure, including energy-related infrastructure that was damaged
severely after the massive attacks that targeted them from October 2022 to
March 2023;
(c) Comply strictly with international humanitarian law and respect the
temporary nature of any transfer or evacuation of children by ensuring their
expeditious return;
(d) Release or return to Ukraine all Ukrainian civilians who have been
deported to the Russian Federation and are detained there as a consequence of
the armed conflict.
110. The Commission further recommends that the Russian Federation:
(a) Ensure that all perpetrators, in particular commanders and other
superiors, and those ordering, soliciting or inducing the commission of
international crimes, are held accountable in accordance with international
human rights standards;

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(b) Take the measures necessary to prevent the commission of such

violations and crimes, in particular through unequivocal instructions to all
branches of the armed forces and other entities participating in the armed
conflict, with a view to ensuring that military discipline and respect for
international human rights and humanitarian law are upheld along with the
principle of command responsibility;
(c) Respect international humanitarian law applicable to occupied
territories and refrain from placing any impediment to humanitarian assistance
in those territories;
(d) Cooperate fully with all international monitoring and investigative
bodies.
111. The Commission recommends that Ukraine:
(a) As a preliminary step towards a comprehensive reparations
programme, establish a victims’ registry as an “institutional portal” for better
coordination of government services to victims;
(b) Comprehensively address mental health and psychosocial needs
resulting from the armed conflict by addressing access and allocation of
resources to the relevant services and enhancing their institutional coordination,
legal regulation, monitoring and evaluation;
(c) Consider establishing a DNA registry that would aid in the
identification and recovery of missing children;
(d) Harmonize its legislation relating to war crimes where it is not in
conformity with international standards and amend its criminal code to clarify
the definition of “collaborative activity” to avoid legal uncertainty and harm to
social cohesion;
(e) Taking into account both the enormous caseload and limited
resources, finalize an investigatory and prosecutorial strategy, which will
prioritize cases on the basis of clear criteria and ensure due process and
transparent monitoring.
112. The Commission recommends that other States and regional and
international organizations:
(a) Strengthen national, regional and international accountability
mechanisms, both judicial and non-judicial, including by improving their
coordination and supporting the effective participation of civil society and
groups representing victims and survivors;
(b) Ensure that recognizably necessary national reconstruction
programmes or property restitution programmes are not designed to the
detriment of victims’ reparations;
(c) Further integrate the human rights dimensions of the armed conflict
in Ukraine more fully into the Security Council’s agenda.

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