[ad_1]
A top official in Kyiv on Monday challenged a section in a U.N. report on human rights in Ukraine that said searches in the buildings of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate could be discriminatory.
The report, released last week by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, raises concerns about Russian bombings that killed Ukraine civilians and severely damaged infrastructure. It also takes issue with harsh treatment of Ukrainians in Russian-controlled territory.
But it includes concerns for the treatment of Russian sympathizers in areas still under Ukrainian control – and the government’s treatment of the church with strong Russian ties. The church has faced backlash amid the discovery of Russian passports and anti-Ukrainian propaganda during the nationwide raids on its religious sites.
The report stressed the need to ensure that “all those facing criminal charges enjoy the full spectrum of applicable fair trial rights.”
Ukraine Foreign Ministry’s spokesman Oleh Nikolenko, in a Facebook post, urged the U.N. agency to refrain from “unbalanced political assessments” and base their reports on facts.
“Ukraine is a democratic state in which freedom of religion is guaranteed,” Nikolenko said. “At the same time, freedom does not equal the right to engage in activities that undermine national security.”
WAR CRIMES:US officials pledged to hold Russia accountable for war crimes in Ukraine. Congress wants receipts.
Developments:
►Secretary of State Antony Blinken chairs a virtual panel session Tuesday on “A Just and Lasting Peace in Ukraine,” featuring Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
►International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Mariano Grossi joined Zelenskyy in viewing damage to the Dnipro hydroelectric station that helps sustains nuclear safety of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
►Prosecutors in Poland say a foreign national suspected of spying for Russia will be held for three months pending investigation. The suspect, in Poland since January, has collected information about key infrastructure and security procedures, prosecutors said.
ADS AND CASH:Advertising splash and cash: Kremlin urges Russians to join the fight in Ukraine as Putin vows to move nukes: Updates
Moscow unmoved by outrage over plan to put nukes in Belarus
Reactions from the West will not affect Russia’s plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
“Such a reaction, of course, cannot change Russia’s plans. The president explained everything in his statements,” Peskov told reporters. “There is nothing to add.”
U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby rejected Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s justification for moving the nukes – Britain providing Ukraine with rounds containing depleted uranium – saying the armor piercing ammunition is not a nuclear threat, is common on the battlefield and that Russia also uses it.
European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell tweeted that Putin’s decision was an “irresponsible escalation & threat to European security,” a position echoed by NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu.
US intensifies pressure on Russia over war crimes
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are launching a full court press to hold Russia accountable for war crimes it is accused of committing in Ukraine. A pair of House and Senate committees will hold hearings in mid-April to bring attention to atrocities such as the civilian massacres in Bucha and Mariupol that U.S. officials are helping the Ukrainian government investigate and prosecute. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, plans to have the Ukrainian prosecutor general and victims of war crimes appear before the panel on April 19.
“Any person in the U.S. can relate to the situation. A brutal, aggressive killer just got into your house and is killing your children, and is raping people for no reason, just because they thought they can do that,” Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S. Oksana Markarova told USA TODAY. Read more here.
Civilian toll continues to rise
Ukraine has suffered 22,424 civilian casualties since the start of the war, including 8,401 killed and 14,023 injured, the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights announced. The agency “believes that the actual figures are considerably higher” because counts in many areas have been delayed or are pending corroboration. Chief among those areas the Donetsk and Lunansk regions of the Donbas, where Russians occupy most of the territory and where fighting in recent weeks has been most fierce.
Contributing: The Associated Press
[ad_2]
Source link