a Human Rights Watch (HRW) appealed to Ukraine on Friday fulfilling the promise to investigate the use of land mines in the war against Russia and remembered that has not yet received any responses to such incidents provoked by Kiev.
In a statement released to the press, the Organization for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights, based in New York, cites as an example cases reported in the city of Izium, eastern Ukraine, where Ukrainian troops used “petal mines” that caused at least one death and dozens of amputations.
HRW explained that it shared evidence of what happened in Izium, as well as other cases, with the Ukrainian government in May, but has not yet received any response from Kiev authorities on these specific incidents, beyond the aforementioned pledge to to investigate the case. use of these mines.
The non-governmental organization (NGO) specifically refers to its use mines, known as ‘PFM-1’, traditionally carried in rockets that detonate several meters above the ground.
The mines are separated by the explosion and randomly scattered over large areas of land, exploding as soon as they hit the ground or left to ‘sleep’ waiting for someone to step on them.
These mines were used by Ukrainian forces in the Russian-occupied city of Izium in eastern Ukraine, according to HRW. between April and September 2022, as well as elsewhere in eastern Ukraine, now controlled by Kyivaccording to the discovery in May this year of the remains of ‘Uragan 9M27K3’ missiles that carried these mines, with inscriptions in Ukrainian.
After investigating these texts, HRW accuses a Ukrainian NGO that is funding the war effort against Russia but has failed to identify it pending the outcome of the investigation promised by the Ukrainian government.
Each ‘Uragan 9M27K3’ mine dispersal missile is uniquely designed to carry 312 ‘PFM-1S’ anti-personnel mines.
The markings on all images of examined missiles show that they were produced in 1986 at a former USSR ammunition factory named #912.
In the statement, Human Rights Watch also accuses Russia, which invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, of resorting to using landmines in the conflict.
According to HRW, which has published four reports documenting the use of anti-personnel mines by Russian forces in Ukraine since 2022, the Moscow army used at least 13 types of anti-personnel mines in different regionswhich caused an undetermined number of deaths and injuries.
In the statement, HRW reminded Ukraine that it is a member of the 1997 Mine Prohibition Convention, which it signed in 1999 and ratified in 2005, and that it must commit to investigating and prosecuting those responsible for these incidents.
Russia, which is not a party to the Mine Prohibition Convention, is violating international humanitarian law by using anti-personnel mines, which are inherently indiscriminate weapons.
Source: DN
