Russian Forces Accused of New crime Against Humanity in Ukraine, Targeting Civilians to Force Displacement
KYIV, Ukraine - An self-reliant international commission of inquiry has accused Russia of committing a new crime against humanity in Ukraine: systematically forcing civilians to flee their homes through relentless drone attacks and orchestrated expulsions and transfers. The report, published Monday, expands on previous findings and alleges these actions constitute a deliberate strategy to depopulate vast areas of Ukrainian territory.
The commission, established by the UN Human Rights Council following russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, resolute that Russian authorities have “systematically coordinated actions aimed at driving Ukrainian civilians from their places of residence by carrying out drone attacks, as well as carrying out expulsions and transfers.” This builds upon a May finding that Russian drone strikes over a 100-kilometer stretch of the Kherson region already constituted the crime against humanity of “murders.”
The latest report extends this accusation to a significantly wider area - over 300 kilometers along the Dnieper River, encompassing the Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, and Mykolaiv regions. The commission asserts these attacks also amount to “the crime against humanity of forced population transfer,” alleging Russian troops “intentionally target civilians and civilian objects,” including ambulances and firefighters.
Moreover, the report details war crimes committed through the deportation and transfer of civilians from occupied areas in the Zaporizhia region during 2022 and 2023. Civilians were reportedly forced to travel 10 to 15 kilometers across a “highly risky operational zone” to reach Ukrainian lines.
The commission, which operates independently of the UN and has not received cooperation from Russian authorities, based its findings on interviews with 226 individuals - including victims and witnesses – and the examination of over 500 videos.
The accusations come as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Pokrovsk is currently the “main objective” of Russian forces, highlighting the ongoing intensity of the conflict and the continued threat to civilian populations.
