Ukrainian human rights commissioner responds to likely killing of seven civilians by Russians in Pokrovsk

Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets has sent letters to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the United Nations regarding the likely killing of seven civilians by Russian troops in the city of Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast.

Source: Lubinets on Telegram

Quote: "Ukrainians were hiding in the basement of a residential building when two Russian soldiers broke in. Two civilians, a father and his son, went out to the occupiers, who demanded alcohol. When they were told that there was no alcohol, the occupiers opened fire and killed the father and son.

After that, the Russians went down to the basement and shot the other people there. As a result, an entire family was among those killed – a married couple, their son, and the woman's mother."

Details: Lubinets added that only one person managed to survive by pretending to be dead.

The incident likely occurred on the night of 20-21 December.

Quote: "This case is shocking in its brutality and cynicism. I have already sent official letters to the ICRC and the UN. The whole world must see the faces of Russian soldiers who came to kill civilians!

I would like to stress that the events in Pokrovsk are not isolated. They fit into a systematic practice of violence that Russian forces use against civilians in the temporarily occupied and frontline territories of Ukraine. The deliberate killing of civilians is a gross violation of international humanitarian law and a war crime."

Details: Lubinets also urged civilians to evacuate in time in order to save their lives.

Background: Earlier, it was reported that two Russian soldiers shot dead seven civilians in Pokrovsk after demanding alcohol.

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