- Since the first day of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine four years ago, civilians have been among the main victims of Russia’s strategy of terror. Indiscriminate bombings, torture and killings are integral to Russia’s tactics.
- In early February 2026, a delegation of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), including its President Alexis Deswaef, went to Kyiv and Kharkiv, witnessing how the repeated targeting of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure amid a bitterly cold winter has led to a humanitarian crisis that has never been more dire.
- FIDH, together with its Ukrainian member organisations Center for Civil Liberties (CCL), Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group (KHPG) and Truth Hounds, call for the endorsement of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine.
24 February 2026. When Vladimir Putin launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine four years ago today, he stated that his attack did "not contradict the high values of human rights and freedoms in the reality that emerged over the post-war decades". Yet since the first hours of invasion until today, his war has rested on abhorrent human rights abuses, and international crimes committed on a massive scale against unarmed civilians and prisoners of war (POWs).
From the Bucha massacre to the daily bombing of civilians, and the continued operation of torture sites in the occupied Ukraine regions as in the Russian territory: the dehumanisation of Ukrainians is integral to Russia’s tactics. Russia also systematically violates its obligations under international humanitarian law by targeting Ukraine’s civilian energy infrastructure, to condemn Ukrainians to face the bitter cold of the winter and daily life without electricity.
"This war cannot simply be reduced to lines on a map and numbers negotiated behind closed doors. It is also defined by Russia’s war crimes and crimes against humanity, which can only be addressed through public trials, victims’ testimonies, and documentation, to uncover the truth. Our current global justice system is insufficient, because prosecuting the crime of aggression committed by Vladimir Putin and other Russian high officials is outside the International Criminal Court (ICC)’s jurisdiction, and Russia has the right to veto at the United Nations. Only a strong Special Tribunal, backed by determined diplomatic support, could undertake such a necessary task," said Alexis Deswaef, FIDH President.
"Although the Ukrainian people are holding on and so-called peace talks are underway, we must never forget the severity and the scale of the harm inflicted on Ukrainians. We have documented tens of thousands of serious violations of international humanitarian law and human rights committed by the Russian army and affiliated forces since 2014. Vladimir Putin and other political leaders and army commanders who ordered, allowed and often encouraged the commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity must be tried and convicted for these abuses," said Oleksandra Matviïtchuk, CCL Chairwoman.
"A key tenet of Russia’s propaganda in its war against Ukraine is that it supposedly directs its war efforts against military targets. This false narrative is contradicted by the countless cases of murder, rape, and acts of torture of Ukrainian civilians and POWs at the hands of Russia’s armed forces. As well as by Russia’s continued tactic, orchestrated and endorsed by its leadership, of attempting to deprive Ukrainians of electricity and heating during one of the coldest winters on record. Russia’s war is against Ukrainians, and it is based on hatred, dehumanisation, and systematic denial of human rights and dignity," said Dmytro Koval, Co-Executive Director, Truth Hounds.
Agreements between the Council of Europe and Ukraine in June 2025 opened the door to the establishment of a Special Tribunal. FIDH, CCL, KHPG and Truth Hounds call on European governments and others worldwide to support the Special Tribunal and make international accountability and justice a non-negotiable prerequisite for a genuine resolution of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
