Ombudsman: None of Ukrainian defenders in captivity saw ICRC reps

None of the Ukrainian defenders in captivity saw ICRC representatives. Ukraine wants to raise the issue of non-fulfillment of the ICRC mandate regarding meetings with prisoners of war, said Ombudsman for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets, Report informs referring to RBC-Ukraine.

“None of the prisoners of war that we released saw any ICRC representative. This is a violation. In my opinion, this is a violation of the mandate of the ICRC and we should talk about it publicly,” the commissioner said.

Lubinets added that he plans to meet with the leadership of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva in early October.

The Ombudsman explained that the representatives of the ICRC assumed commitments for the defenders of Mariupol, and their mandate compels Russia to comply with the Geneva Conventions.

“They were present when our heroes were leaving Azovstal in Mariupol and, in accordance with their mandates, they took upon themselves the commitment to check, follow, monitor this situation. We saw that this didn’t happen at all,” he stressed.