UN experts confirm Russia's responsibility for the Olenivka terrorist attack
Kyiv • UNN
UN experts have confirmed Russia's premeditated crime at Volnovakha Correctional Colony No. 120 near Olenivka on July 29, 2022, which resulted in the deaths of over 50 prisoners. The UN's internal analysis revealed that Russia carried out the attack, refuting its own version of a HIMARS strike.
The murder in Olenivka was a carefully planned crime, UN experts confirmed after a long investigation. On the night of July 29, 2022, in the Volnovakha correctional colony №120 near Olenivka, Russia committed an egregious terrorist act, specialists concluded. This was reported by UNN with reference to the Office of Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets.
Details
As a result of the explosion in Olenivka, over 50 Ukrainian prisoners of war were killed, and almost 130 more were wounded. Immediately after the explosion, Russia accused Ukraine of it, claiming a supposed HIMARS missile strike, the ombudsman noted.
The International Committee of the Red Cross and the UN then expressed their readiness to investigate the terrorist act. However, just 5 months later, the UN Fact-Finding Mission on Olenivka was disbanded due to lack of security guarantees.
I repeatedly tried to meet with participants of the UN Mission to hand over the materials available in Ukraine. The Mission never agreed to familiarize themselves with them. I also offered the Russian Commissioner for Human Rights to jointly visit the scene of the tragedy, which was also refused. And only a year later, the UN refuted Russia's lies, stating that the terrorist act in Olenivka "was not caused by a HIMARS missile"!
At the same time, according to him, the UN has never publicly accused Russia of the terrorist act, even despite available evidence.
However, recently a group of UN experts separately published substantive material with evidence - an internal UN analysis showed that Russia itself planned and carried out the attack.
The report identifies the weapons and ammunition used by the Russian armed forces to kill Ukrainian prisoners of war, and details the planning, organization, and execution of the murders. It analyzes the course of investigations by Russia, Ukraine, and the UN itself, and provides further recommendations for Ukraine.
This is an important document that should serve as a powerful impetus for continuing the investigation. The pain of Ukrainians for Olenivka has not gone anywhere. We insist on an investigation and fair punishment for the perpetrators!