Representatives of the Organization made a preliminary conclusion about the authenticity of the viral video with the execution of an unarmed prisoner of war and urged to wait for the results of an independent investigation.
The United Nations has tentatively concluded the authenticity of the video of the execution of a Ukrainian soldier by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This was stated today by a representative of the United Nations Office for Human Rights to France-Presse, reports The Guardian.
The brutal footage shows a detained Ukrainian soldier standing in a trench and smoking a cigarette, then he utters the Ukrainian slogan “Glory to Ukraine”, after which he falls, shot from a machine gun.
“We are aware of a video posted on social media that shows a Ukrainian soldier taken out of combat, apparently being shot by Russian armed forces. Based on preliminary examination, we believe that the video may be real,” the UN spokesperson said.
“Following Russia’s armed attack on Ukraine more than a year ago, the UN Human Rights Office recorded numerous violations of international humanitarian law against prisoners of war, including numerous cases of executions of both Russian and Ukrainian prisoners of war,” she said.
According to the UN speaker, all these allegations must be investigated impartially and effectively, and those responsible must be held accountable.
Also, according to preliminary data from representatives of the ground forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, published on March 7, the shot soldier is a soldier of the 30th separate mechanized brigade named Timofey Nikolayevich Shadura, who has been considered missing since February 3, 2023 after the fighting in the Bakhmut region.
The execution of the military for the words “Glory to Ukraine”: what is known
Recall, on March 6, a viral video spread on the network in which Russian soldiers shoot a Ukrainian soldier for the words “Glory to Ukraine.” This became known from a video published by blogger Sergei Sternenko.
“Another war crime of the Russians. A Ukrainian soldier was captured. After he said “Glory to Ukraine,” a Russian shot him and filmed it,” Sternenko signed the video.
On the same day, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky promised to find and punish those responsible for the war crimes.
Focus wrote yesterday that representatives of the Main Intelligence Directorate reported that comprehensive work to find the perpetrators of the execution was already underway, and that the issue, both in this and in previous cases of reprisals against the Ukrainian military, remains “a matter of honor.”
