Europe

The legitimate protests were dispersed using disproportionate and, in some cases, unnecessary force by the police in the capital, Tbilisi, according to the statement from High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk. Dozens of protesters and media workers were reportedly injured during the demonstrations sparked by a prime ministerial announcement postponing negotiations on joining the European Union. Security forces reportedly used pepper spray, water cannons and chemical irritants...

Their warning comes amid growing international concern about the vulnerability of Ukraine’s nuclear facilities which rely on a stable power grid to maintain critical safety systems. “The latest large-scale Russian missile attack on Ukraine’s electricity system has led to further significant damage to electric substations that are essential to the operation of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants,” the experts emphasised. Severe damage, civilian casualties The strikes occurred overnight and...

The “grim milestone” fell as Ukraine fired long-range American-made missiles into Russia for the first time, according to media reports. ‘Not just numbers’ Conflict erupted in Ukraine over a decade ago following Russia’s occupation of Crimea in the east and escalated on 24 February 2022 with the full-scale assault on the country. The UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Ukraine, Matthias Schmale, detailed the death and destruction that has occurred since then. More than 39,000...

Dr. Nadezhda Buyanova was sentenced to five-and-a-half years in prison for allegedly making anti-war remarks concerning Russian troops fighting in Ukraine, during a private medical consultation. “It is appalling to sentence a doctor for unproven private comment in the course of her professional duties,” said Mariana Katzarova, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation. The case originated when the widow of a Russian serviceman killed in Ukraine filed...

12 November 2024 Migrants and Refugees With Ukraine approaching 1,000 days since Russia’s full-scale invasion, civilians are facing mounting challenges as intense attacks continue and winter tightens its grip, according to UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR). Recent attacks on energy infrastructure have decimated 65 percent of Ukraine’s energy generation capacity, severely disrupting electricity, heating and water supplies across the country. “The deepening emotional toll on innocent people...

23 October 2024 Human Rights For more than half a year, the family of award-winning Ukrainian journalist Victoria Roshchyna have lived in torment, seeking answers about their daughter’s fate, after she disappeared while reporting from Russian-occupied territory in eastern Ukraine. That’s according to a group of independent UN human rights experts who said in a statement released on Wednesday they are urgently seeking confirmation of reports regarding the death of Roshchyna, who was...

22 October 2024 Peace and Security A deepening demographic crisis is roiling Ukraine, exacerbated by Russia’s full-scale invasion, the UN sexual and reproductive health agency, UNFPA, said on Tuesday, underscoring an urgent need for comprehensive recovery strategies focused on human capital and socioeconomic reform. Since Russia’s invasion in 2014, the ongoing war has worsened these trends, with millions displaced and thousands killed, said Florence Bauer, UNFPA regional director for...

9 October 2024 Health Our “collective amnesia” about how bad the COVID-19 pandemic was should not prevent us from protecting ourselves and our loved ones from the ongoing spread of respiratory diseases as the northern hemisphere prepares for winter, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday. Coronaviruses like COVID, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) “must be taken seriously” as they are particularly dangerous for at-risk groups including the elderly...

In a briefing to the UN Human Rights Council on Tuesday, UN rights chief Volker Türk highlighted the widespread devastation and violations of international law that have defined the conflict. He noted that July 2024 was the deadliest month for civilians since October 2022, with a sharp rise in casualties due to large-scale Russian attacks across Ukraine. Between June and August, civilian casualties surged by 45 per cent compared to the previous three months, driven by missile, drone, and...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the UN General Assembly on Wednesday that Russia cannot defeat his people on the battlefield, so it is looking for other ways to break the Ukrainian spirit, deplorably by targeting its vital energy infrastructure as winter approaches.