Russia intensifies war crimes: Executions and chemical warfare
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.
On 21st October, Ukrainian officials reported that a few days earlier, on 18th October, Russian forces executed two unarmed Ukrainian prisoners of war near Selidove 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 emphasise 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. This refers, among others, 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 US 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 increasingly equip grenades with chloropicrin.
