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It may take years for war criminals to be tried in court, says human rights expert
As we told you earlier, 15 Russian soldiers are due to go on trial for committing war crimes after nearly an entire Ukrainian village was captured and held underground.
Back in late February 2022, in the violent first month of war, almost everyone in Yahidne – a village with a population of around 400 before the Russian invasion – was held captive below in dark, freezing temperatures with little electricity.
However, it could take “many years” before the “actual perpetrators will sit in a court”, a human rights expert has told Sky News.
Matilda Bogner, the head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, visited the village last year, where she spoke to survivors about their ordeal.
Describing what the conditions in the basement were like, Ms Bogner said they were “a form of torture” and “inhumane”.
She explained that it is difficult to rank the worst violations committed there because there have been so many serious incidents recorded.
“War is always brutal but what makes this is a crime is that people were taken, civilians who were non-combatant were taken, were forced to remain in a basement and we see this as a form of illegally holding people in confined areas,” she said.
“That is not allowed under international humanitarian law and international human rights laws.”
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