The UN is investigating dozens of cases of Ukrainian men and boys allegedly being raped by Russian soldiers, in what an agency envoy warned could be just “the tip of the iceberg.”
“I have received reports, not yet verified … about sexual violence cases against men and boys in Ukraine,” said Pramila Patten, UN special representative on sexual violence in conflict, during a press conference in Kyiv on Tuesday.
Ukrainian investigators have been collecting information on allegations of rape, torture and other suspected war crimes by Russian forces.Standing side by side with Olha Stefanyshyna, Ukraine’s deputy prime minister for European integration, Patten said dozens of cases of rape that so far have crossed her desk “only represent the tip of the iceberg.”
UN Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict Pramila Patten and Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna hold a joint briefing on sexual violence at the hands of Russian soldiers.Ukraine’s prosecutor general Irinia Venedikota said during a separate press conference Tuesday in the ravaged Kyiv suburb of Irpin that the Kremlin has been deploying sexual violence against civilians as a tactic to force Ukrainians to surrender.
“This is, of course, to scare civil society … to do everything to [force Ukraine to] capitulate,” she said. In his public comments and interviews, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly talked about the hundreds of cases of suspected rape that have been recorded so far, including those targeting young Ukrainian girls and even a baby.
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