29/04/2022 12:05

Commissioner: Luhansk residents deprived of access to water due to destruction of communications by enemy shelling

In the Luhansk region, communications were almost completely destroyed by enemy shelling.  As a result, residents of Lysychansk, Rubizhne, Popasna, and Severodonetsk were left without water supply.

In some places, communications cannot be restored at all.  In particular, there will be no water in almost 100,000 Lysychansk until the end of the war.

By shelling out strategic livelihoods, the occupying country violates the right of Ukrainian citizens to access to drinking water, as enshrined in a UN General Assembly resolution and a UN Human Rights Council resolution (A / HRC / 15 / L).

According to international law, the occupying power is fully responsible for supplying water and providing the population of the occupied territories with other resources.

Under the first part of Article 55 of the Convention for the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War of 12 August 1949 (Fourth Geneva Convention), the occupying Power must use all available means to provide the civilian population with all necessary resources, including water.

I appeal to the UN Commission for  Investigation Human Rights Violations during Russia's military invasion of Ukraine to take into account these facts of war crimes and human rights violations in Ukraine.

I call on international partners to provide weapons to fight the aggressor country of Russia!