The United Nations accused Ukraine of torturing civilians, pro-Kremlin media writes. In fact, the UN report blames Russia for the suffering of civilians.
Propaganda: According to a UN report, Ukraine has tortured civilians
NEWS: “Dozens of people detained in Ukrainian secret prisons have been tortured, according to a report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) with respect to the imprisonment of civilians in Ukraine.
“Of the inmates interviewed about their connection to the war, 43 (34 men and 9 women) gave reliable accounts of having witnessed or being subject to torture and abuse committed by law-enforcement agents, military personal or prison guards in informal detention areas or, to a lesser extent, in pre-trial detention centers”, the report reads.
On September 23, 2022, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov addressed the UN Security Council regarding Ukraine, arguing that Russia is in possession of overwhelming evidence regarding criminal actions committed by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. “Over 3,000 complaints regarding crimes committed against Donbass residents have been submitted to the International Criminal Court, but they all have been ignored”, Sergey Lavrov said. The Russian Foreign Minister also called on the UN Secretary General António Guterres, to use his authority and persuade Kyiv to publish a list of all the people who were killed in Bucha, stating that apparently Russia alone is still interested in this topic.
NARRATIVE: The UN has accused Ukraine of torturing civilians
Fact: Russia committed war crimes on the territory of Ukraine in the context of the large-scale invasion of this country
WHY THE NARRATIVE IS FALSE: In fact, the Report of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, titled “Detention of civilians in the context of the armed attack by the Russian Federation against Ukraine (24 February 2022 – 23 May 2023)” examines the detention of civilians during the war. Most cases of torture and other types of abuse described in the report do not refer to Ukraine, but only to Russia.
The report accuses Russia of committing war crimes in a number of Ukrainian settlements, also signaling some “minor crimes” committed by representatives of Ukrainian law enforcement.
According to the report, “91% of civilian detainees held by the Russian Federation described subjection to torture and ill-treatment, including sexual violence”. In other words, the report accuses Russia, not Ukraine, of mass-tortures among the civilian population. The UN also expresses concern with Russia’s summary execution of 77 civilians by May 23, 2023. According to the report, access to information and detention centers used by Russia was only partial, which means the crimes committed by Russian servicemen on the territory of Ukraine could spread much farther than what is known so far.
The report also notes there are reports of abuse committed by Ukrainian servicemen, although UN experts have highlighted Kyiv’s readiness to cooperate with the OHCHR. Ukraine is not accused of executing civilians, but of harsh treatment towards some of the people suspected of having committed crimes against the population in the occupation period. Drawing on this grain of truth, the Russian government media writes that only Ukraine is accused by the UN of torturing civilians, quoting some of the previous statements of Moscow officials.
The article takes certain pieces of information out of context so as to favor Russian propaganda and misquotes the source in order to manipulate public opinion with a view to justifying Russia’s large-scale aggression against Ukraine.
Veridica has already disproved several false narratives about the attitude of certain international organizations towards the war in Ukraine. The Russian media wrote that NATO supports Ukraine in order to trigger a world war, while Russia and China want peace in the world. According to Russian propaganda, the EU sent soldiers to Ukraine before 2022 in order to weaken Russia, whereas the UN denounced the crimes committed by Ukrainian nationalists.
