In a distressing revelation, UN Special Rapporteur on torture Alice Jill Edwards, along with other human rights experts, submitted a detailed dossier to the Russian Federation this Thursday, highlighting the sexual torture of Ukrainian civilians in the occupied regions. The report covers alarming abuses in Kherson, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia, documenting the ordeals of 10 civilians, including four women and six men, subjected to harrowing experiences under Russian control.

Edwards described the documented cases as "grisly," indicating that these instances are only a glimpse into a broader, systematic pattern of torture imposed on civilians. The allegations involve barbaric methods like electric shocks to detainees' genitals, beatings, blindfolding, simulated drownings, and mock executions. Moreover, the prevalence of sexual assaults, including rapes, threats of rape, and other heinous acts, suggests a standardized routine of abuse in the occupied territories.

“The international rulebook appears entirely abandoned by Russia. It is high time that they were held to account for these unlawful practices,” Edwards stated, emphasizing the urgent need for accountability.

The dossier not only highlights individual atrocities but also points out the use of torture as a deliberate tactic to intimidate and control the civilian population. It documents arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, denial of medical care, and deaths in detention. The ongoing detention of one of the women in Russia has prompted an urgent call for her release.

These revelations align with a ruling last month by the European Court of Human Rights, which found Russia guilty of grave violations of international humanitarian law in Ukraine. The court's findings underscored the widespread and regular use of rape by Russian troops and armed separatists, declaring rape as a weapon of war to be an act of extreme atrocity amounting to torture.

Additionally, this report coincides with a recent UN announcement, which highlighted a sharp global increase in conflict-related sexual violence in 2024. Over 4,600 survivors last year endured abuses used as weapons of war, torture, and political repression. The UN Secretary-General has called on all parties to prohibit sexual violence and ensure accountability, noting that such acts are employed by state and non-state actors alike to secure territory, resources, and control.

As the international community grapples with these findings, the call for justice grows louder, urging immediate action to address and halt these severe human rights violations.