The United Nations says Kiev’s and Moscow’s soldiers used elderly and disabled civilians as human shields. In one situation, Ukrainian soldiers hid in a nursing home, provoking an attack that killed dozens of residents.
The report by the UN Office of the High Commissioner says Ukrainian, Russian troops and forces aligned with Moscow are using civilians as human shields. "Both Russian armed forces and affiliated armed groups as well as Ukrainian armed forces took up positions either in residential areas or near civilian objects, from where they launched military operations without taking measures for the protection of civilians present," it concludes.
The report detailed one incident of Kiev’s soldiers using human shields in Ukraine’s Donbas region shortly after the Russian invasion. According to the UN Office of the High Commissioner, the residents of a nursing home in the Luhansk region were unable to evacuate because Ukrainian forces mined the roads around the facility.
As Russian-aligned forces pushed into the region, Ukrainian soldiers entered a building where civilians were residing, and then a battle broke out with the invading troops. "On 7 March, soldiers from Ukrainian armed forces entered the care house, where older persons and residents with disabilities and staff were located…On 9 March, soldiers from Russian-affiliated armed groups engaged in an exchange of fire with soldiers from Ukrainian armed forces, although it remains unclear which side opened fire first."
Russian-aligned forces attacked the facility two days later, causing a fire to break out. According to the report, the total number of deaths is unclear, but the number appears to be about 50. On March 11, " A fire started and spread across the care house. Some staff and patients fled the care house." It continued, "Russian affiliated armed groups met the survivors and provided them with assistance. According to various accounts, at least 22 patients survived the attack, but the exact number of persons killed remains unknown."
Officials in Kiev initially portrayed the deaths of the civilians in the nursing home as an atrocity committed solely by Russian force. However, the AP says the UN findings show "Ukraine’s armed forces bear a large, and perhaps equal, share of the blame for what happened."
A second alleged use of human shields was committed by Russian troops. The report says, "360 residents, including 74 children and five persons with disabilities, were forced by Russian armed forces to stay for 28 days in the basement of a school they had been using as their base."
The UN claims the civilians were provided with insufficient care and ten elderly people died as a result.
Kyle Anzalone is the opinion editor of Antiwar.com, news editor of the Libertarian Institute, and co-host of Conflicts of Interest.
War is ugly, cruel and dangerous!
So much ugly violence that can be avoided by just sitting down and talk and compromise. Blinken still refusing to talk.
Step one, fire Blinken.
and the whole neocon cabal controlling the State Department.
(e.g. the Kagan pack including the in-law Nuland)
Biden is in charge, not Blinken. It is Biden’s war, he does not allow diplomatic negotiations, and Zelensky is only Biden’s delivery boy.
Well said Renate!
Biden is a turnip, in charge of nothing. The Neocons are in charge.
You are right, only the neocons are not as public, and Joe is out there selling the neocon doctrine, a true believer himself. .
I feel compelled to say, “What do you have against turnips?” Someone had to say it.
I must confess that, despite limited experience with them, I hold a clear, if inexplicable prejudice against turnips. Is this wrong? Does being anti-turnip make me a bad person?
I like beets … a lot. Does that help?
Not worth reading whaymtwver UN says. Ukraine can do what it wants. But all is equal.
In other words, for you, If it’s not pro Russian news, then it is bad news.
That’s the nature of propaganda from all sides.
This must be news to the western media, but I don’t recall any wars that didn’t involve civilian casualties.
At least half right. Why Russia would use Nazi/ Nato tactics against their own people they’re there to save is anybodies guess. If that were the case people would flee in droves behind Nazi lines and not to Russia as they do now.
If that were the case the war would’ve been over after a very short and classic bomb ’em to stone age US kind of war.
This is obviously not the case which explains why Russia is only using somewhere between 8-10% of its military force and is fighting the biggest Nato army up to date with one hand tied behind their back.
The UkroNazies on the other hand was placed in these predominantly Russian lands to suppress the people they despises. To prevent another uprising like the one in 2014 which saw the entire region rise up against the US imposed Nazi junta, from ever happen again and, eventually, replace them with more aryan western ukranians.
The large number of damaged residential buildings are proof that the defenders (Ukrainians) uses human shields. I’m sure the Russians would prefer to engage Ukrainian forces in the open field. I haven’t seen evidence that the Russians are using human shields. I don’t think the Russians are saints, but I haven’t seen evidence that they are deliberately using human shields.
“The large number of damaged residential buildings are proof that the defenders (Ukrainians) uses human shields.”
No, the large number of damaged residential buildings is proof that large numbers of residential buildings are being damaged, and nothing else. It isn’t proof of who’s damaging them. It isn’t proof of how they’re being damaged. It isn’t proof that “human shields” are or are not being used.
There is no point in destroying residential buildings unless they are used for defensive purposes. The Azov Nazis and other ultra-nationalist paramilitary forces were trained by Nato for fighting in cities. They are neither trained nor equipped for open battle. Moreover, Ukraine armed untrained civilians and criminals to fight a modern army. While that measure has no strategic value, it is bound to drive up civilian deaths.
“There is no point in destroying residential buildings unless they are used for defensive purposes.”
In some alternate universe, that might be the case.
In this universe, there are several reasons — not including mere accident — why either side might destroy its opponents, or its own, residential buildings.
One is to keep those buildings FROM being used for defensive purposes.
Another is to use the rubble for defensive purposes.
A third is to force the residents of those residential buildings to vacate the area.
“Use the rubble for defensive purposes.”
You are a complete idiot. Your pro-Nazi attitude becomes more obvious with every stupid post.
Thomas,
We know from long experience over the last 25?years that NATO forces routinely ignore the most basic protections of civilians. Kiev‘s military is trained, integrated, and is commanded by NATO officers. Why would Kiev do anything differently than any other NATO military ?
Regarding the LPR and DPR militia‘s my guess is these fellows are more amateur and likely to make mistakes plus have scores to settle. As for the other Allied units – my impression is they are super careful to keep civilians out of line of fire etc. There are enough videos of civilians weeping for joy when liberated by the Allies to buttress that belief.
All I did was point out that X is not proof of Y. I did not claim that Y is not the case, merely that X doesn’t prove it.
For any given building, I don’t know — and you likely don’t know either — which side destroyed it, or why. There are multiple reasons why either side might attack a residential building, so the fact of an attack on a residential building is not itself proof of who conducted the attack.
One reason why Ukrainian forces might destroy Ukrainian buildings is “area denial,” which the NATO Defence College justifies “to prevent the attacker from bringing its forces into the contested region or to prevent the attacker from freely operating within the region and maximizing its combat power.”
As yourself point out, the Ukrainian forces are effectively NATO forces doctrine-wise, so there’s no reason to suppose that they wouldn’t employ that doctrine.
Additionally, as Humbaba points out, the Ukrainian forces do better in built-up/broken-up environments than in the open.
Specifically, their greatest advantage so far seems to be the much-increased efficacy of newer anti-tank weapons versus the Russian doctrine of “infantry supported by tanks” in those environments. So any given destruction of urban environment could quite well be “self”-destruction of that environment for tactical advantage.
One reason for forces on the offensive to attack residential buildings is to create streams of refugees clogging up roads in the enemy’s rear and streams of civilian casualties using up the enemy’s medical resources.
The only real thing to be counted on is that in a war, neither side really gives two shits about civilian casualties except to the extent that those casualties either produce tactical benefits or cause propaganda problems.
“much-increased efficacy”
Zero evidence of that. In fact, most reports show the Javelin and other AT weapons have been massively ineffective, partly because half the time they don’t even function.
for NATO, such tactics are really appropriate. NATO is an occupier. the destruction of civilian infrastructure is the norm for them. but in this case it turns out that the Ukrainian government is the occupiers. amusing 🙂
Humbaba draws erroneous conclusions. in development, the actions of the Russian troops are hampered by the fact that it is necessary to minimize civilian losses and damage to civilian infrastructure (Putin’s direct hit). the conduct of hostilities in areas saturated with anti-tank weapons has not been a problem for the Russian army for a long time. it is also worth noting that the quality and capabilities of Western anti-tank systems were greatly overestimated. the fact that any defense based on stationary fortifications breaks through has been proven in the last century. defense requires mobile reserves and the ability to quickly respond to changes in the combat situation and carry out counterattacks, but due to constant attacks on command and control centers, the Ukrainian army does not have such capabilities.
what do we have in the dry residue?
the army of ukraine catastrophically loses to the army of the Russian Federation in technical and organizational (as a result of technical lag) plan and is much inferior in firepower. given the flawed ideological component of the ruling regime in Ukraine, the only thing they can oppose to the actions of Russia is terror. pay attention – the terror of their own (supposedly) population. given the nature of the hostilities at the beginning of the special operation, near Kyiv or Kharkov, we can confidently say that the Armed Forces of Ukraine are ready to turn any city in Ukraine into runes. it has nothing to do with the separatist sentiments of the population. is it effective? I doubt. as this tactic is used, the population’s loyalty to Russia rises and falls in relation to the Kyiv regime. in essence, by these actions, Kyiv is preparing the regions for joining Russia.
Useful propaganda tools, they can even be fake and from other wars and times, they look the same everywhere.
This isn’t a courtroom case. Humbaba’s logic is correctly formed deductive proof.
It were a gratuitous waste of munitions otherwise, and circumstantially reinforced by the Washington-Nazi knee-jerk propaganda proclivity to “wave the bloody shirt,” … which in countless instances over the past 30 yrs have proved not only lies, but projected attributions, … the famous bio-chem attack in Duma, ….
It’s not only not a “correctly formed deductive proof,” it’s a great example of the non sequitur fallacy.
It’s shocking how disingenuous you are. Have you ever heard of an open city? When Paris wasn’t destroyed in WW2 was that a f’ing miracle in your eyes?
These cities are being wrecked because they are being used as fortresses by the Ukrainians, despite the fact that most of the residents despise them. Do you have the guts to even admit that?!?
It’s shocking how credulous you are. Have you ever heard that the Russians do propaganda just as much, and just as well, as everyone else?
As for the cities being used by fortresses by the Ukrainians, that doesn’t force the Russians to destroy them. The Russians COULD knock it off and go the f*ck home.
Another example of Knapp’s pro-Ukrainian, pro-Nazi attitude. Why is this guy even involved at Antiwar.com with this attitude?
Feel free to point out where I’ve said so much as a single word that’s “pro-Ukrainian” or “pro-Nazi.”
No hurry. I’ll wait. And I’ll be waiting forever.
If you want the Russians to “go fucking home”, then by definition you want the neo-Nazi Ukrainian regime to win. Proof positive in your own words. Fortunately, being a moron as you are, that ain’t gonna happen. Russia will take all of Ukraine whether you like it or not. So suck it up.
I didn’t say I WANT the Russians to “go f*cking home.” I said that the Russians have the option of going f*cking home instead of having their hasbarists like you simultaneously boast of their military prowess and whine incessantly about those mean ol’ Ukrainians having the gall and temerity to actually fight.
Russians go home. What do not you like? 🙂
about “Ukrainians who had the audacity to resist” let me remind you about some Arabs who also “had the audacity to resist.” remember September 11th? remember what the United States did with these Arabs? now the Russians will do the same with American proxies;)
and what do you not like? no one is whining, just reminding you that the US is funding Nazis and terrorists. tell me you didn’t know about it 🙂
what an ugly post-war picture it turns out … Russia defeated and defeated the Nazis and terrorists, the West financed and armed the Nazis and terrorists and lost … and in addition to this, the West will also receive an economic crisis 🙂
“let me remind you about some Arabs who also ‘had the audacity to resist.’ remember September 11th? remember what the United States did with these Arabs? now the Russians will do the same with American proxies;)”
Yes, I remember September 11th.
And I remember what the United States did with “these Arabs” — fought two long, losing wars against other people. Is that what you think Russia will do?
I’m well aware that the US regime is funding Nazis and terrorists. And I’m against that. That doesn’t mean I have to
pretend the Russian regime is, or is doing, any better.
“And I remember what the United States did with “these Arabs” — fought two long, losing wars against other people. Is that what you think Russia will do?”
if you act like the United States in the Middle East, then of course Russia will lose, but it looks like Russia is acting like in Chechnya, or rather much better and more efficiently.
“I’m well aware that the US regime is funding Nazis and terrorists. And I’m against that. That doesn’t mean I have to
pretend the Russian regime is, or is doing, any better”
directness and moderate cynicism, that’s what I like about you 🙂
it would be strange if you, who live and earn money in the USA, liked Russia with which the USA is in direct confrontation. yes, modern Russia is not the USSR, but it’s still much better than the USA. I mean the moral and ethical side of the issue. although this is true in other areas as well. in any case, in Russia the government did not take 43 billion in aid to small businesses in order to transfer 40 billion (by the way, where did the 3 billion disappear to?) for military aid to some Nazis on the other side of the globe …
I neither like nor dislike “Russia.” I have a couple of old friends there (I don’t know any Ukrainians these days and when I did they were immigrants living in the US).
I dislike all regimes, the US regime most of all because I have to live under it.
As for taking money from one’s “own” people and using it in proxy wars, yes, the US regime does a lot of that. And the Russian regime has historically done a lot of that, too. When either of those regimes is fighting, you’ll usually find the other either openly or covertly subsidizing its chosen target.
I would like to clarify… could you give an example of a normal government or are you an anarchist?
I’m not sure what you mean by “normal government.” And yes, I am an anarchist.
since you are an anarchist, the question of “normal government” is removed from the agenda 🙂
See you in the comments.
Have you heard these rumors of Russia having a meeting this Friday of declaring war against Lithuania/NATO ?
Nope. And I doubt that will occur. There were rumors back in May about the same thing, mobilization and all that. Until it happens, it’s BS. Russia has no need to do any of that at this time, everything is going according to their plan.
You are a Ukie, Western stooge.
The UN is a NATO puppet and just as corrupt as the League of Nations it replaced
Sociopath/psychopaths! And US government supports them!
Clean, clear and concise!
Civilians are being killed by Russian bombardments. Those are reported in detail, every day.
Those same bombardments are doing a lot of other damage. We see no reports of that, nor any details of losses.
Ukraine’s thousands of shells fired every day are certainly landing on some civilians too. We see no reports of those in the Western press.
We are being manipulated.
That is how the civilians at risk are being used. We see it daily.
I suspect the second incident, attributed to the Russians, was probably for their protection. No such explanation fits Ukrainian operations. I’d also like to see the relative frequency of such operations. Ukrainians would certainly exceed the Russians. I also assume the UN ignores the Donbass shelling for the last eight years.
Everyones behavior is deplorable and dangerous…
I keep waiting for humanity to evolve but the only evolution I see is a spiral downward, not upward…
Mans inhumanity towards man continues unabated and it may full well culminate with nuclear holocaust, at the rate things are going…
They are not “human shields” if the other side just does not care, and shoots freely regardless. They are shields only if they shield. They clearly don’t, not for either side.
They are something else — their deaths are propaganda props. Or maybe the combatants on both sides just don’t care enough to be bothered.
The UN is a US stooge, its reports are US propaganda.
All the quoted passages equivocate about alleged Russian abuses. It’s the Syrian/Assad “chemical weapons attacks” — false flags all — yet again.
An example from the article:
“On 7 March, soldiers from Ukrainian armed forces entered the care house, where older persons and residents with disabilities and staff were located…On 9 March, soldiers from Russian-affiliated armed groups engaged in an exchange of fire with soldiers from Ukrainian armed forces, although it remains unclear which side opened fire first.”
Note: “… although it remains unclear which side opened fire first”
Baloney! We know exactly who opened fire first: the criminals who took up position in the nursing home while preventing the elderly patients and staff from leaving.
The UN is totally corrupted, probably by the same Zionist agents who have purchased and corrupted all the Western “liberal democracies”.
I am sorry I can not fully agree with that. The United Kingdom’s role in this is more significant. Unalligned Nations need to be encouraged to act as determined agents of sensibility.
people work in the UN. work. that is, they perform certain actions for which they receive money. they will do what they are paid to do. I’m not justifying them, I’m just explaining why it works the way it does. The UN is paying the US to have the UN promote the US position. The UN does not pay for some unbiased position. this fact tells us that the UN is not some unbiased organization.
but only the UN?
The OSCE directly supplied the Ukrainian Nazis with intelligence data that was used during the shelling.
The OPCW in Syria established the use of chemical weapons through phone calls to some people, without doing work on the spot or analyzing chemical samples.
IOC … there is nothing to even comment on. some “athletes” are officially allowed to use doping for “medical reasons”, others are tested for doping at 5 am before the competition.
HRW who asked not to publish videos of torture and execution of Russian prisoners. not to investigate, not to stop, no, they asked not to publish.
WHO, instead of fighting the pandemic, is participating in corporate competition with black methods and has not been able to certify Russian vaccines for several years. The reaction of the WHO to the facts of the development of biological weapons is also indicative, or rather, the complete absence of this reaction. but they joined the obscurantism about 50+ sexes. Are they medically trained scientists?
Tell me, can you name an international organization that has not yet discredited itself?
What Henry Kissenger said (paraphrasing) “spinning out of control” is starting to come to pass. This is six weeks from when he said it. There is no need for a new cold war, non passage of grain, and Ukraine being demolished. We have to use the United Nations (that FDR and Joself Stalin allowed with France & Britain). Stay antiwar.
You want to see what value reports of this sort are? Check out Moon of Alabama’s analysis of a recent air strike allegedly against a building full of civilians.
NYT Ground Report Debunks NYT Claim Of Strikes Against ‘Ukraine’s Civilians’
https://www.moonofalabama.org/2022/07/nyt-ground-report-debunks-nyt-claim-of-strikes-against-ukraines-civilians.html#more