Since 2022, 401 cases of sexual violence against Ukrainian civilians by Russian troops recorded

Alyona Pavliuk — 19 June, 14:19

Hands. Stock photo: Tinnakorn/Depositphotos

Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion, 401 cases of sexual violence committed by Russian military personnel against Ukrainian civilians have been recorded. The actual number may be higher, as these are only the cases that victims have been able to report.

Source: Ukraine's Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko

Details: The victims include 250 women and 151 men, among them 23 underage girls and one boy.

The highest numbers of documented cases of sexual violence were recorded in Kherson Oblast (124), Donetsk Oblast (92), Kyiv Oblast (60), Kharkiv Oblast (48) and Zaporizhzhia Oblast (33).

The judicial system is already handling these crimes. A total of 148 cases of sexual violence against civilians have been solved. Notices of suspicion have been issued on 116 Russian military personnel. Prosecutors have submitted 64 indictments involving 81 individuals to court.

Ukrainian courts have already delivered 19 verdicts against 26 individuals. All those convicted received prison sentences.

Most of the perpetrators are currently hiding in Russia. However, the documented crimes, identified offenders and collected evidence provide a legal basis for holding Russia accountable, including in international courts.

Quote: "Conflict-related sexual violence is one of Russia's gravest war crimes. And it has no statute of limitations.

For Russia, sexual violence is not a 'side effect' of war. It is an instrument of terror. A way to break a person, humiliate them and spread fear in occupied territories and torture chambers."

Background:

At the end of May, the United Nations included Russia for the first time in its annual blacklist of parties responsible for conflict-related sexual violence.
Despite limited access for international investigators, the organisation reported 310 verified cases of sexual violence against prisoners of war and civilian detainees in Russia and in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.

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