UN Chief calls on Russia to grant ICRC full access to prisoners of war

“The Secretary-General reiterates his appeal to the Russian Federation that the International Committee of the Red Cross be granted full access to all Prisoners of War, in accordance with international humanitarian law, including the Third Geneva Convention,” the UN Secretary General spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.

The appeal from UN Chief comes after Ukraine also requested ICRC to send a delegation to the prisoners of war camp in Olenivka region.

On 25 August, research conducted by the Humanitarian Research Lab of the Yale School of Public Health and the Conflict Observatory was published which reported the identification of some 21 filtration camps in and around Russian-controlled Donetsk oblast, run by Russian and Russian allied forces and used for Ukrainian “civilians, POWs, and other personnel”.

These camps were allegedly used for four main purposes: as registration points; as camps and other holding facilities for those awaiting registration; as interrogation centers; and as “correctional colonies”.

At Olenivka prison, one of the identified camps, the disturbed earth seen in imagery was said by researchers to be consistent with graves.

Kaveh Khoshnood, a professor at the Yale School of Public Health, said: “Incommunicado detention of civilians is more than a violation of international humanitarian law — it represents a threat to the public health of those currently in the custody of Russia and its proxies. The conditions of confinement documented in this report allegedly include insufficient sanitation, shortages of food and water, cramped conditions, and reported acts consistent with torture.” (ILKHA)