By Manal Abdel Fattah
Ukraine’s Ombudsman, Dmytro Lobinets, said that approximately 28,000 Ukrainian civilians, 2,000 of whom are over 65 years old, are in captivity in Russia.
Dmytro added that by detaining the civilian population on temporarily occupied Ukrainian territory, Russia is flagrantly violating international law, in particular, the Geneva Convention on the Treatment of Prisoners of War, which does not mention the possibility of capturing civilians, and for the occupiers, the age of civilians does not constitute an obstacle to their detention, even if some of them are older. About 80 years old.
He added: Russia began to create an atmosphere of fear and terror in the temporarily occupied territories in the first days of the comprehensive invasion of Ukraine.
He continued: In this regard, civilian prisoners are one of the main tools used by Russian forces to put pressure on Ukrainians under occupation, and their fate is exacerbated by the complete lack of rights and freedoms amid Russian arbitrariness, such that a single statement in support of Ukraine or the display of Ukrainian symbols is a reason for arresting civilians and placing them in a detention center. Pre-trial, where they are subjected to psychological and physical torture and subjected to humiliating screening procedures.
He added: Amid these circumstances, Russia does not allow representatives of the United Nations and the Red Cross to visit civilian prisoners, continuing: This situation is exacerbated by the lack of a clear legal mechanism to exchange exclusively civilian prisoners.
He added: In addition, Russia obstructs the process of exchanging civilian prisoners in every possible way and does not agree to hold negotiations in this regard, saying: All of this represents a crime against Ukrainian civilians and a violation of the rules and principles of international law, and an appropriate response to Russia’s crimes committed in the occupied Ukrainian territories. Temporarily is the imposition of additional sanctions and complete international isolation.
