A Russian soldier suspected of killing a Ukrainian civilian in an explosion of Kalashnikov fire will soon become the first member of Russia’s armed forces to face trial in Ukraine for acts committed in the context of the war.
Vadim Shishimarin, 21, will face trial for war crimes and premeditated murder, Ukraine’s Attorney General’s office Iryna Venediktova said in a statement on Wednesday.
We learned that the Russian soldier was charged after the investigation of the Ukrainian secret service (SBU) after the events that took place on February 28 in Chupakhivka, in the Sumy region, in the northeast of the country.
According to this investigation, Private Shishimarin and four other soldiers had just stolen a car near Chupakhivka to flee after their convoy was attacked by Ukrainian fighters.
The group, however, was afraid to be denounced when they encountered a 62-year-old man riding next to his bicycle while talking on the phone on a road. The man was unarmed, according to the SBU investigation.
One of the soldiers ordered the accused to kill a civilian so that he would not report it.said a statement from the Attorney General’s office. The man died instantly, just ten meters from his home.
The Attorney General did not say how Private Shishimarin was arrested or how evidence was collected in this case. The date of the trial was also not announced. The prosecutor, however, released a photo of the suspect, his face blurred.
” Shishimarin is physically in Ukraine. The trial we are initiating will not take place in absentia, but in the presence of the person who killed a civilian. And this is a war crime. “
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began, more than 10,700 alleged war crimes involving 622 suspects have been reported to the prosecutor’s office.
A few weeks ago, 10 Russian soldiers were accused in the name of committing war crimes in Boutcha, outside kyiv, where the bodies of several civilians were found after the departure of Russian troops. However, these soldiers were not detained by the Ukrainian authorities.
Kyiv demands accountability from the Human Rights Council
In Geneva, Ukraine and its allies took advantage of a special session of the United Nations Human Rights Council to denounce on Thursday the endless list abuses committed by Russia since the invasion on February 24.
At the end of the meeting, requested by Kyiv, the 47 Member States of the Council shall vote on a draft resolution requesting a investigation of the international commission forUN in Ukraine.
The goal is to hold those responsible accountable serious human rights violations allegedly committed by Russian occupation troops in the regions of kyiv, Chernihiv, Kharkiv and Sumy in late February and March 2022.
Thousands of people in my country lost their lives. Bombings and shootings in Russia are part of our daily livessaid the first Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Emine Dzhaparova, at the opening of the debates, in a video address.
Torture and enforced disappearance, sexual and gender -based violence, the list of crimes in Russia is endlesshe scolded, before raising a blanket on which a boy raped in front of his mother drew a whirlwind of black lines.
During the debates, many diplomats allied with kyiv, but also theUNexpressed their horror and anger at the suffering suffered by Ukrainians. Russia’s invasion is accompanied by more horrific and unsustainable discoveries every day.adopted French ambassador Jérôme Bonnafont, while his British counterpart denounced the brutal campaign led by Moscow.
The High Commissioner ofUN Human Rights Commissioner Michelle Bachelet said her office continues to verify allegations of abuse, many of these could be equivalent to war crimes. It currently has information on 300 cases, he said.
” The scale of the illegal executions, including summary indications of executions in areas north of Kyiv, is staggering. “
Ms Bachelet also attacked unimaginable horror suffered by residents of Mariupol, a city in southeastern Ukraine that is almost now under Russian control.
The draft resolution also asks him to review the humanitarian and human rights situation in the port city at the 50th session of the Council, which will take place from June 13 to July 8.
The first since Moscow was suspended
This is the first meeting dedicated to the deterioration of the human rights situation in Ukraine since the General AssemblyUN suspended Moscow at the beginning of April from the highest body of international organizations in the field of human rights.
Russia could have participated in the Council’s work as an observer, but opted for an empty seat policy on Thursday and waived its right to respond.
In order not to completely leave the field to his opponents, the Russian ambassador toUN in Geneva, Gennadi Gatilov, issued a press release protesting the demonization of Russia by the “collective West”speaks of an incriminating investigation and denounces the excesses of the Council that have become a forum to perform political stunts.
At the end of the first meeting, on March 4, kyiv got the Human Rights Council to adopt a overwhelming majority of a resolution that would decide to immediately create an independent international commission of inquiry.
Its chairman, Erik Mose, a former judge in Norway’s Supreme Court and the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), which also heads the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), indicated that the commission has begun its work. even if it doesn’t have a budget yet.
He also pointed out that large number of entities currently investigating the situation in Ukraine is not without increase coordination issues.
Source: Radio-Canada
