GENEVA: The United Nations decried Friday continuing deadly attacks by Myanmar’s military despite a ceasefire declared following a devastating earthquake that killed nearly 3,800 people.
“The unremitting violence inflicted on civilians, despite a ceasefire nominally declared in the wake of the devastating earthquake on 28 March, underscores the need for the parties to commit to, and implement, a genuine and permanent nationwide halt to hostilities and return to civilian rule,” UN rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement.
A multi-sided conflict has engulfed Myanmar since 2021, when Min Aung Hlaing’s military wrested power from the civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Following the 7.7 magnitude quake, the junta joined opponents in calling a temporary halt to hostilities on April 2 for relief to be delivered.
But Turk said that since the quake and up to April 29, “the military has reportedly launched at least 243 attacks, including 171 air strikes, with over 200 civilians reportedly killed.”
“The vast majority of attacks,” he added, had happened after the ceasefire took effect.
While the military renewed once its “largely unobserved ceasefire,” the truce had been allowed to expire on April 30, Turk said.
“It is imperative that the military immediately stop all attacks on civilians and civilian objects,” he insisted.
The UN rights chief decried how “the relentless attacks affect a population already heavily beleaguered and exhausted by years of conflict,” compounded by the impact of the quake.
Nearly 20 million people in the country already rely on humanitarian assistance, he said, stressing that people in Myanmar “need food, water and shelter.”
“They need, and must have, peace and protection,” he said.
“International law is clear that humanitarian aid must be able to reach those in need without impediment.”
Turk urged the military to “put people first, to prioritize their human rights and humanitarian needs and to achieve peaceful resolution to this crisis.”
“Instead of further futile investment in military force, the focus must be on the restoration of democracy and the rule of law in Myanmar.”
Over 200 killed in at least 243 Myanmar military attacks since quake
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Over 200 killed in at least 243 Myanmar military attacks since quake
- Nearly 20 million people in the country already rely on humanitarian assistance, he said, stressing that people in Myanmar “need food, water and shelter”
- A multi-sided conflict has engulfed Myanmar since 2021, when Min Aung Hlaing’s military wrested power from the civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Russia committed ‘crimes against humanity’ in deporting Ukrainian children: UN inquiry
- The inquiry said Russia had deported or transferred “thousands” of children from occupied areas of Ukraine, of which it had so far confirmed 1,205 cases
- “Four years on, 80 percent of the children deported or transferred in the cases investigated by the commission have not returned,” it said
GENEVA: Moscow’s deportation and forcible transfer of children from Ukraine to Russia amounts to a crime against humanity, a United Nations team of investigators said Tuesday.
The UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine said it had collected evidence leading it to conclude that “Russian authorities have committed the crimes against humanity of deportation and forcible transfer, as well as of enforced disappearance of children.”
The probe was established by the UN Human Rights Council shortly after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The inquiry said Russia had deported or transferred “thousands” of children from occupied areas of Ukraine, of which it had so far confirmed 1,205 cases.
“Four years on, 80 percent of the children deported or transferred in the cases investigated by the commission have not returned,” it said.
Moscow has failed to establish a system facilitating returns, and has instead focused on long-term placement of the children with families or institutions in Russia, while relatives were not informed of their fate.
The commission confirmed its previous finding that Russian authorities had unlawfully deported and transferred children — as a war crime — “and that they have unjustifiably delayed their repatriation, which is also a war crime.”
These measures “were not guided by the best interests of the child,” and have violated international law, the probe found.
- Putin cited -
It said the involvement of Russian President Vladimir Putin, “including through his direct authority over entities that have steered and executed this policy, has been visible from the outset.”
In 2023, the International Criminal Court issued a war crimes arrest warrant against Putin, accusing him of “unlawfully deporting” Ukrainian children.
The issue is highly sensitive in Ukraine and remains central to negotiations for a potential peace agreement between Kyiv and Moscow.
According to Kyiv, nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children have been forcibly removed since Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Russia insists it has moved some Ukrainian children from their homes or orphanages to protect them from hostilities.
As for Russian trials in the context of its invasion of Ukraine, the commission found that Russian authorities have “systematically fabricated evidence” and “systematically violated a range of fair trial guarantees,” while judges “have not acted with independence and impartiality.”
- ‘Extreme violence’ -
The commission also probed the situation of nationals from 17 countries who were recruited — either voluntarily or through deception — to fight with Russian troops in Ukraine.
They included men from Azerbaijan, Belarus, Brazil, Cuba, Egypt, Ghana, India, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Nepal, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Turkiye and Yemen.
“After training, usually lasting between one week and 30 days, they were forced to serve on frontlines in Ukraine, often assigned extremely dangerous duties,” the commission said in its report.
Commanders arbitrarily imposed “extreme violence” as punishment for refusing orders that meant almost certain death, with soldiers describing being treated like “cannon fodder,” sent on “meat assaults” without training or necessary equipment, and “forced to advance at all costs.”
“The evidence collected demonstrates abusive behavior, cruelty, humiliation, inhuman treatment, and a total disregard for human life and dignity, perpetrated with a sense of impunity,” the report said.
Regarding Ukraine, the report voiced concern about the overly broad definition and sometimes distorted interpretation of the crime of “collaboration.”
The commission also said reports regarding violent treatment of conscientious objectors during Ukrainian mobilization were “a source of concern.”
The report will be presented at the Human Rights Council in Geneva on Thursday.
Moscow does not recognize the commission and does not answer its requests for access, information and meetings.
