Drone operated by Russian forces have repeatedly attacked Ukrainian civilians, causing deaths, injuries and large-scale destruction, UN human rights investigators said this week.
Russian drone strikes have targeted individuals, houses and buildings, humanitarian distribution points and critical energy infrastructure servicing civilians, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine said in a report.
Russian drones have also targeted first responders, including ambulances and fire brigades, which are afforded special protection under international humanitarian law, it added.
Many of the attacks struck the same vehicles and infrastructure repeatedly, deliberately setting them on fire, spreading terror among the civilian population and violating their fundamental human rights, according to the report.
The commission also accused Russia of unlawfully deporting civilians from occupied areas of Ukraine.
Many deportations were carried out with little or no notice, leaving people no time to pack or contact relatives before being transported, the report said.
Moscow has long been accused of forcibly transferring Ukrainian children from occupied areas into Russia.
In March 2023, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin, accusing him of overseeing unlawful deportation of children and unlawful transfer of people from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia.
Separately, the court issued a warrant for Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia's Commissioner for Children's Rights, who faced the same charges.
US First Lady Melania Trump said earlier this month that some Ukrainian children caught up in the war with Russia had been reunited with their families following her communication with Putin.
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Source: PAP, CNN, news.un.org