Themes by tag: russian crimes

On July 30, Media Center Ukraine will host a presentation of a report on the enforced disappearance of civilians — one of the crimes committed by russia in the occupied territories. It is a practice when the state or its agents arrest a person without due process or simply kidnap them. Victims cannot speak to a lawyer or relatives and are usually instead of prison or detention center they are held in a location where they can’t rely on the protection of the law.

The T4P initiative managed to identify 5,340 victims of enforced disappearances and filed submissions to the International Criminal Court as well as summaries to the UN Working Group, substantiating that russia deliberately and systematically uses this practice, mostly by persecuting people who have a pro-Ukrainian position, have served in the Ukrainian army, police or civil service.

Participants:

• Hanna Ovdiienko — a lawyer, Co-Author of the report,
• Mykola Komarovskyi — a lawyer of the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, Co-Author of the report,
• Oleksandra Romantsova — Executive Director of the Center for Civil Liberties

Prior accreditation is required.

• casualties
• occupation
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

On July 28, a charity run to support Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital Okhmatdyt will be held in Kyiv to commemorate the Medical Workers’ Day.

The goal of the race is to help the hospital recover from the russian missile attack on July 8, 2024 by collecting UAH 1 million.

For reference: As a result of the russian attack on the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital on July 8, 2024, two people died. 32 injured people sought medical help.

• casualties
• children
• dead
• doctors
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

On July 28, Kyiv will unveil the exhibition “OLENIVKA: The Quintessence of Cruelty,” marking the second anniversary of the Olenivka terrorist attack. This event, organized in collaboration with the National Museum of the Revolution of Dignity, aims to highlight the suffering endured by Ukrainian prisoners of war.

The exhibition’s opening coincides with an action organized by the Association of Azovstal Defenders’ Families, which has been holding weekly demonstrations across Ukrainian cities. Their posters, featuring slogans such as “They saved us, now we have to save them” and “Fight for them as they fought for us,” call for support for prisoners of war and missing persons under the #FREEAZOVSTALDEFENDERS campaign.

Journalists planning to attend the exhibition must register in advance.

Additionally, on the same day, Kyiv will host a requiem event titled “Olenivka – pain that will never go away.”

For context: The attack occurred on the night of July 29, 2022, when the russian federation targeted a barracks at the Olenivka penal colony, resulting in the deaths of at least 50 Azovstal defenders and injuring over a hundred.

• casualties
• dead
• military
• prisoners
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

On July 24, Media Center Ukraine will hold a press conference entitled: “Missing 16 Sailors: The Fate of the Crews from the Sunken ‘Sloviansk’ and ‘Stanislav’ Boats.” Two Ukrainian ships sank in the spring of 2022 following missile strikes by the russian forces in the Black Sea. Some of the sailors were saved. The fate of 16 remains unknown. For two years, the United by the Sea NGO, founded by the families of missing sailors, has been collecting information about how the ships went down. However, there is still no information about what happened to the 16 sailors. At the same time, some unofficial reports have started circulating claiming that the sailors were captured by the russians.

During the press conference, representatives of the families of the missing sailors, the Navy Command and the Media Initiative for Human Rights will talk about the search for the crews, attempts to reach the boats, cooperation with the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Maritime Coalition led by the UK and Norway.

Participants:

– Olesia Aulina, Head of the United by the Sea NGO, wife of the missing Damir Aulina, commander of the patrol boat “Sloviansk”;

– Tetiana Sherishorina, mother of the missing Nikita Sherishorin, sailor of the patrol boat “Sloviansk”;

– Olena Bieliachkova, Coordinator for Groups of Families of Prisoners of War at Media Initiative for Human Rights;

– Andrii Ursol, Captain (First Rank), Deputy Commander of the Ukrainian Navy for Moral and Psychological Support, Department Head. 

For reference: The Sloviansk sank on March 3, 2022, in the area between the Kinburn and Tendra spits, 2 km from the coast. The vessel was the first combat casualty of the Ukrainian Navy during russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Stanislav sank on May 7, 2022, 20 meters from Snake Island, it now lies at a depth of about 20 meters.

Pre-registration is required.

• casualties
• military
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

On July 28, Kyiv will host a requiem event entitled “Olenivka – pain that will not go away.” The organizers invite everyone to commemorate the brave and loyal heroes of Ukraine who went through the defense of Mariupol with dignity. The enemy could not defeat all of them on the battlefield, and on the night of July 29, 2022, the adversary made a despicable act and blew up almost 200 Azov soldiers in the colony in occupied Olenivka.

For reference: the defense of Mariupol lasted 86 days, 82 of them – completely besieged. From May 16 to 20, 2022, the Mariupol garrison carried out the order to stop the defense of the city and go into captivity.

On the night of July 29, 2022, the russian federation committed a terrorist attack, setting off an explosion in the barracks of the penal colony in Olenivka, which housed Ukrainian prisoners of war. At least 50 defenders of Azovstal were killed in the act.

• casualties
• dead
• military
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

The Center for Civil Liberties invites journalists to cover the important topic entitled “Ukrainian prisoners who were forcibly taken to the russian federation: problems of returning them.”

According to Olena Vysotska, Deputy Minister of Justice, within the first days of the full-scale invasion, 11 penal institutions with almost 3,000 prisoners and staff found themselves in the occupation. According to the Protection for Prisoners of Ukraine NGO, about 2,000 people who were serving sentences in places of deprivation of liberty were deported from Kherson region alone. On the territory of the russian federation and temporarily occupied territories, prisoners are tortured and subjected to abuse. russians passports are forced on imprisoned Ukrainians while they are in captivity.

The organizers are ready to help journalists with getting in touch with:

– Experts for interviews and comments,

– People who went through this experience.

Also, on July 31, journalists can take part in the human rights club on this topic, where they will have an opportunity to talk with experts, representatives of the Ministry of Justice and former prisoners. (The event requires registration).

• occupation
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

On July 22, Kyiv will unveil the exhibition “The Will to Win: Warriors of Sport” to mark Ukraine’s participation in the Olympic Games. This exhibition showcases the rich history of Ukraine’s Olympic journey, spanning from the late nineteenth century to the present.

The display highlights the devastating impact of russia’s aggression on Ukraine’s sports infrastructure. Visitors will see fragments of trophies, sports equipment, and stadium seats, all damaged or destroyed by russian hostilities. These artifacts were salvaged from various sports venues wrecked by ongoing warfare.

A special section, featuring photographs by Mykola Synelnykov, celebrates the resilience of Ukrainian athletes who continue to train amidst the ruins of their facilities, exemplifying their unbreakable spirit.

For reference: This year, Ukraine is sending a delegation of 140 athletes to compete in 23 sports at the Olympics. Tragically, nearly 500 Ukrainian athletes and coaches have lost their lives since the large-scale russian invasion began.

• culture
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

The apiary near Mykolaiv (a city in the south of Ukraine) was founded by Yakiv Fedosov’s father. After his father’s death, Yakiv continued the family business. Before the full-scale invasion, Yakiv had bought new equipment and increased the number of bee colonies. Over time, he began making honey infused with medicinal herbs.

However, with the beginning of the Big War, the village in which the farm was located became the epicenter of the russian offensive. Heavy shelling destroyed the house, some of the beehives burned down, and the occupiers stole the already produced honey.

However, this did not stop Yakiv. He distributed the remaining honey to the military. Then he bought more honey from beekeepers he knew, and based on it, he created a honey paste for the soldiers, which quickly replenishes their energy.

Now Yakiv is waiting for compensation for the destroyed property from the state. He plans to rebuild the house and continue to work on the apiary.

Yakiv Fedosov is in Mykolaiv oblast. He is ready to communicate with journalists, both online and offline.

• casualties
• reconstruction
• russian crimes
• Mykolaiv

In a landmark initiative spanning April to July 2024, Ukraine has established its inaugural Team of Cultural First Aiders under the flagship project “Enhancing Capacities in Ukraine for Cultural Heritage First Aid and Recovery Planning.” This team comprises 23 specialized professionals who underwent intensive training.

Throughout the comprehensive program, Ukrainian experts including museum curators, monument conservators, architects, engineers, legal advisors, restorers, and managers engaged in both online and in-person sessions. They drew insights from international and domestic mentors, examining strategies for safeguarding cultural assets during crises. 

Practical exercises, such as assessing the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Viazivka, Zhytomyr region—damaged during the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in 2022—underscored their training. Participants learned to apply international standards in risk management, document damage, evaluate threats, and execute protective measures for endangered cultural sites.

Journalists seeking further details, including visual documentation from the Viazivka training, can obtain additional information about this pioneering effort.

• culture
• russian crimes
• Kyiv

Anastasiia Morozova serves as a pediatrician at the Okhmatdyt National Children’s Hospital and heads the Little Hearts program under FRIDA Ukraine, a Ukrainian-Israeli Medical Volunteer Mission. This program deploys multidisciplinary teams of volunteer doctors to orphanages to assess the children’s needs for medications, vaccinations, rehabilitation, and surgical interventions. Anastasiia has participated in over 20 FRIDA Ukraine missions.

On July 8, Anastasiia witnessed a russian missile attack on Okhmatdyt. She was unharmed and, along with FRIDA volunteers, helped evacuate the children, provided medical care to the victims, and assisted in clearing the rubble. The attack resulted in two fatalities and 32 injuries at the hospital.

Journalists can arrange interviews with Anastasiia and join FRIDA Ukraine missions by prior arrangement.

For reference: Since the full-scale invasion began, about 8,500 Ukrainian children have been left without parental care, over 1,500 have become orphans, and tens of thousands have lost their homes or been forced to relocate. Ukrainian children’s homes and orphanages are under immense pressure, with depleted resources and limited access to quality medical care. Through the Little Hearts project, FRIDA supports orphanages and boarding schools across Ukraine.

• children
• doctors
• russian crimes
• women
• Kyiv