Current:Home > ContactRussians committing rape, 'widespread' torture against Ukrainians, UN report finds -Wealth Empowerment Academy
Russians committing rape, 'widespread' torture against Ukrainians, UN report finds
View
Date:2025-04-16 21:31:15
Russian forces are allegedly committing continuous war crimes in Ukraine, including rape and "widespread and systematic" torture, the latest Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine found.
The Russians are allegedly torturing people accused of being Ukrainian army informants in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, and in one case, the torture was so extreme that it caused a victim's death, the commission said in its latest report to the U.N. Human Rights Council on Monday.
MORE: It's a kayak with a grenade launcher. And it could be game-changer in Ukraine.
One torture survivor said, "Every time I answered that I didn't know or didn't remember something, they gave me electric shocks," according to the commission.
MORE: Bucha survivors recount 'senseless' horror as they emerge from hiding
"Well into the second year of the armed conflict, people in Ukraine have been continuing to cope with the loss and injury of loved ones, large-scale destruction, suffering and trauma as well as economic hardship that have resulted from it," Eric Mose, chair of the Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, wrote in the report. "Thousands have been killed and injured, and millions remain internally displaced or out of the country."
In the Kherson region, members of the Russian forces allegedly sexually assaulted women as their relatives were forced to listen from nearby rooms, the commission said. Sexual assault victims ranged in age from 19 to 83.
The commission also found evidence of "unlawful attacks with explosive weapons," including attacks on residential buildings, shops, a restaurant and a medical facility.
Konstantin Yefremov, a senior Russian army lieutenant who fled Russia, told ABC News in February he witnessed his country's troops torture prisoners in Ukraine, including beating and threats to rape.
Yefremov, 33, spent three months as an officer in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region and said he personally witnessed the torture of Ukrainian prisoners during interrogations, including the shooting of one POW in the arms and legs and threats of rape.
The commission stressed "the need for accountability" for Russia's "scale and gravity of violations," as well as "the need for the Ukrainian authorities to expeditiously and thoroughly investigate the few cases of violations by its own forces."
ABC News' Patrick Reevell contributed to this report.
veryGood! (6)
Related
- Report: Lauri Markkanen signs 5-year, $238 million extension with Utah Jazz
- Leaders of Democratic protest of Israel-Hamas war won’t endorse Harris but warn against Trump
- Video shows geologists collecting lava samples during Hawaii's Kilauea volcano eruption
- The Real Reason Joan Vassos Gave Her First Impression Rose to This Golden Bachelorette Contestant
- Vance jokes he’s checking out his future VP plane while overlapping with Harris at Wisconsin airport
- Ranking NFL's nine 2-0 teams by legitimacy: Who's actually a contender?
- District attorney appoints special prosecutor to handle Karen Read’s second trial
- Sean 'Diddy' Combs denied bail again and will remain in jail until trial
- Big Lots store closures could exceed 300 nationwide, discount chain reveals in filing
- Commitment to build practice facility helped Portland secure 15th WNBA franchise
Ranking
- Romantasy reigns on spicy BookTok: Recommendations from the internet’s favorite genre
- 2 corrections officers stabbed, 3 others injured in assault at Massachusetts prison
- Jon Gruden wants to return to coaching. Could he find spot in college football?
- Gun violence data in Hawaii is incomplete – and unreliable
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Inmates stab correctional officers at a Massachusetts prison
- Jean Smart, Ariana Grande, Michael Keaton among hosts for ‘SNL’ season 50
- Emily in Paris’ Lily Collins Has Surprising Pick for Emily Cooper's One True Love
Recommendation
Boy who wandered away from his 5th birthday party found dead in canal, police say
Powerball winning numbers for September 18: Jackpot rises to $176 million
High School Musical’s Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens' Relationship Ups and Downs Unpacked in Upcoming Book
Grey’s Anatomy's Season 21 Trailer Proves 2 Characters Will Make Their Return
The 401(k) millionaires club keeps growing. We'll tell you how to join.
Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword, It Started With the Wine
Bryce Young needs to escape Panthers to have any shot at reviving NFL career
Jordan Love injury update: Is Packers QB playing Week 3 vs. Titans?