Worldwide Felony Courtroom prosecutor Karim Khan and Ukraine’s Prosecutor Basic Andriy Kostin have a look at components of a Russian missile that was used to assault the Ohmatdyt Youngsters’s Hospital in July, in kyiv, September 10, 2024. | Photograph credit score: Reuters
Ukraine’s prosecutor common mentioned on Tuesday (10 September 2024) that kyiv suspected a senior Russian air drive commander of ordering a missile strike on a youngsters’s hospital in central Kiev in July that killed two individuals and triggered in depth injury.
Prosecutor Basic Andriy Kostin didn’t reveal the person’s identify, however mentioned the Worldwide Felony Courtroom in The Hague had already issued an arrest warrant for him.
In March, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Lieutenant Basic Sergei Kobylash, alleging he was the commander of Russia’s long-range aviation forces. The ICC mentioned on the time that he was suspected of battle crimes, together with ordering assaults on Ukraine’s vitality system.
Russia denies committing battle crimes in Ukraine and says it doesn’t goal civilians.
“We’re persevering with to research to seek out others answerable for the assault on Okhmatdyt,” Kostin informed reporters, referring to the hospital.
He was standing in entrance of the broken clinic, along with ICC prosecutor Karim Khan, who’s visiting kyiv.
In line with Kostin, the commander ordered the launch of a Kh-101 air-to-air cruise missile from a Russian bomber at 10:45 a.m. on July 8, the day of the assault.
Mr Khan added {that a} Kh-101 missile had been recognized based on numerous sources.
“In line with numerous sources and work carried out, it seems that a missile has been recognized, a Kh-101 cruise missile,” Khan mentioned. “Quite a lot of components must be additional studied.”
The ICC has issued arrest warrants for six Russian officers, together with President Vladimir Putin.
Final 12 months, the court docket charged Putin and Russia’s Youngsters’s Ombudsman Maria Lvova-Belova with illegally deporting youngsters from occupied areas of Ukraine.
Russia has dismissed ICC battle crimes arrest warrants as a part of a biased Western marketing campaign to discredit Russia.
Russian officers say such orders have little real-world influence since Moscow is just not a member of the tribunal and neither are different main powers similar to the US and China.
Mr Kostin leads Ukraine’s marketing campaign to prosecute alleged battle crimes dedicated by Russian forces, with greater than 140,000 circumstances beneath investigation.
Printed – September 10, 2024 05:20 pm IST