Watchdog

A UN human rights report says there has been "limited accountability" in eastern Ukraine for arbitrary killings and torture by separatist fighters and Ukrainian soldiers.

"Impunity for killings remains rampant, encouraging their perpetuation and undermining prospects for justice," said the report, issued on July 14 by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

The report was based on research into the killings of more than 9,400 people in Ukraine's Donbas region since fighting started there in 2014 through May 2016.

"Accountability will be key to the establishment of sustainable peace in Ukraine," said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein. "This is the only way forward, as has been fully and tragically demonstrated by the many countries which have not dealt properly with serious international crimes and human rights abuses."

UN investigators found evidence of arbitrary killings by Russia-back separatists, Ukrainian troops, police forces, and volunteer battalions of fighters.

The report cited executions of prisoners by both sides and indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas using imprecise weapon systems.

The OHCHR said some of the killings of civilians could be considered "war crimes."

Although some of the people involved in arbitrary killings have been prosecuted, the OHCHR said many investigations into deaths are delayed or left unfinished.

The report said probes into killings in separatist-held areas of Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk regions appear to be selective and suspects are not guaranteed a fair trial.

Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP

Authorities in Moscow have listed 22 people who were born on Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula as "terrorists and extremists."

The list, published on July 12 by Russia's Federal Financial Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring), includes journalists, civil activists, and political prisoners who have criticized Moscow's occupation and illegal annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region.

Among those named is Mykola Semena, a contributor to a news site about Crimea that is run by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

Semena has been charged by officials in Russia-annexed Crimea with using media to make separatist calls.

Also on the list is blogger Yuriy Ilchenko, who was recently arrested over an article condemning Russia’s seizure and annexation of Crimea.

The list also name several Ukrainian prisoners held in Russia – including Oleh Sentsov, Oleksandr Kolchenko, Oleksiy Chemiy, and the recently free Hennadiy Afanasyev.

Rosfinmonitoring was created by a decree from President Vladimir Putin and reports directly to the Russian president.

The United States, the European Union, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and international media rights groups have all expressed concern about a clampdown on independent journalists and activists in the Russian-occupied territory.