Russia escalates brutality: Executions and chemical warfare in Ukraine
Russian forces have recently increased the number of systematic executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war and continue to use chemical weapons, analysts at ISW report. They remind us that these actions by Russia blatantly violate the Geneva Convention and the Chemical Weapons Convention.
10:28 AM EDT, October 22, 2024
On October 21, Ukrainian officials reported that a few days earlier—on October 18—Russian forces executed two unarmed Ukrainian prisoners of war near Selidov in the Donetsk region.
Russian soldiers shot at Ukrainian prisoners from close range while they were tied up.
According to ISW analysts, Russian forces have recently increased the number of systematic executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war. They emphasize that such actions blatantly violate the provisions of the Geneva Convention on Prisoners of War, which prohibits inhumane treatment and execution of prisoners of war.
Russians use chemical weapons, equipping grenades with poison
In its analysis, the American think tank also states that the Russian military uses chemical weapons in combat operations. The report refers to a video published by a Russian military blogger who openly declares that Russian forces have used chloropicrin (a pesticide harmful to the lungs) against Ukrainian soldiers.
Let us recall that back in May, the U.S. Department of State published findings indicating that Russian forces used chloropicrin and riot control agents in violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention, to which Russia is a signatory. Ukrainian officials have also previously reported that Russian forces are increasingly equipping grenades with chloropicrin.
