UN accuses Russia of systematic torture of civilians in occupied Ukrainian territories

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR) on Tuesday denounced acts of torture, including sexual violence, carried out in a "widespread and systematic" manner by Russian authorities against civilians detained in occupied Ukrainian territories.

In a report released today, UN investigators say that 92% of the 216 civilians released since June 2023 and who were interviewed gave “consistent and detailed accounts of torture or ill-treatment during captivity.”

Civilians interviewed described “severe beatings with various instruments such as sticks and batons, electric shocks to various parts of the body [and] mock executions.”

Many also reported receiving death threats and threats of violence against themselves or those close to them and described precarious detention conditions, including a lack of food and adequate medical care.

In most cases, their families were left with no information about them and were unaware of their whereabouts.

According to the UNHCR, which has a human rights mission in Ukraine but does not have access to areas under Russian control, torture against civilians is "widespread and systematic," with a serious component of sexual violence.

Ukrainian authorities reported that as of May, around 1,800 Ukrainian civilians remained detained by Russia in its occupied territories. However, the UN agency maintained that the actual number is likely much higher.

Russia occupied the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson, as well as the Crimean peninsula, which it annexed in 2014. In addition to Crimea, Moscow announced the annexation of Donetsk and Lugansk, regions in eastern Ukraine known as Donbass, and Zaporizhia and Kherson in September 2022.