UN panel accuses Russia of crimes against humanity over Ukraine civilian attacks

Russia is committing war crimes and crimes against humanity by intentionally attacking civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, including vital energy systems, an independent UN investigations panel said on Monday, CNN reports.

A new report from the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, shared with CNN and being submitted to the UN General Assembly, said the attacks “were carried out with intent.” It said they were in line with a “state policy to deprive the civilian population from essential energy supplies and cause suffering.”

“Russian commanders who were ordering these attacks knew that the heating facilities they targeted were indispensable to the civilian population, in particular during the winter,” the report said.

Russian forces have targeted Ukrainian power infrastructure since 2022 and sharply stepped up attacks at the start of last winter. Kyiv says they cut thermal power generation by 70 per cent in the worst-hit areas. The commission said medical authorities documented deaths from cold in homes and even in hospitals.

The report names Russian President Vladimir Putin, former defence minister Sergei Shoigu, his successor Andrey Belousov and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov as the officials most responsible. CNN has asked the Kremlin for comment.

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the report “confirms what Ukrainians have experienced for years.”

The commission also found “compelling evidence” that Russia and its agents trafficked people from 29 countries, using deception or coercion, to fight in its army. It said Ukraine’s foreign recruits joined “knowingly and voluntarily.”