UN reports over 16,000 Ukrainian civilians still detained by Russia

The United Nations has released a report indicating that more than 95 percent of Ukrainian prisoners of war and 85 percent of civilian detainees are subjected to torture or other forms of ill‑treatment, often on multiple occasions. The findings, compiled by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, are based on testimonies, medical examinations and satellite imagery collected since the start of the conflict in February 2022.

The report details systematic patterns of abuse, including beatings, electric shocks, suffocation and forced exposure to extreme temperatures, and calls for urgent investigations and accountability measures. International bodies and human‑rights organizations have urged all parties to the war to comply with the Geneva Conventions and to allow independent monitoring of detention facilities. The UN emphasized that failure to address these violations could constitute war crimes, reinforcing the need for swift remedial action and protection of detainees’ rights.