“People spoke of unimaginable suffering: homes destroyed, loved ones murdered and lives turned upside down,” said President Erik Møse.
The investigators, who are not U.N. staff and are not paid for their work, said they documented continuing violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, mostly committed by Russian forces and officials, including indiscriminate attacks, torture, deportations and sexual violence.
These, they concluded, amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The team also investigated abuses by Ukrainian forces, including arbitrary detentions and ill-treatment of people accused of collaboration, although limited access prevented full investigations.
Justice must prevail
After hearing victims’ testimonies, investigators renewed their call for accountability and reparation. “Justice must honor those whose lives were deliberately shortened,” they said, highlighting the need for mental health and psychosocial support for survivors.
The visit follows investigators’ latest report to the UN General Assembly, which details Russia’s coordinated actions to remove Ukrainian civilians from occupied areas and forcibly relocate them elsewhere.
UN human rights body regrets US withdrawal from human rights review
The UN Human Rights Council has expressed regret over the United States’ decision not to participate in a key review of its human rights record, scheduled for this week in Geneva.
The review, known as the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), is a process in which all UN member states have their human rights performance reviewed by their peers.
The United States was due to appear before the Council Working Group on Friday but refused to do so – the first time the country has refused to participate in its own review.
Jürg Lauber (center), president of the UN Human Rights Council, chairs the meeting of the planned universal periodic review of the United States of America.
Postponed
Council members urged Washington to resume cooperation with the UPR and said they would reschedule the review for 2026, although it could take place sooner if the United States recommits.
The decision follows the Trump administration’s recent withdrawal from the Human Rights Council itself, although all UN member states not among the Council’s 47 members remain observers, able to represent themselves during the proceedings.
The United States’ previous withdrawal, in 2018 under the first Trump administration, did not prevent the country from participating in its 2020 UPR, making this year’s absence unprecedented.
Documents compiled for the planned review, including reports from UN experts and civil society groups, remain available online. The United States did not submit its own national report by the deadline.
The council said it would continue efforts to persuade the United States to return to the process, emphasizing that the UPR system depends on the equal participation of all 193 UN member states.
Orlando Bloom highlights plight of Myanmar’s Rohingya
UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Orlando Bloom visited Bangladesh this week to see the impact of severe cuts to aid work for children living in camps in Cox’s Bazar.
The star actor met some of the 500,000 children in the huge camp, along with their families.
They are “100 percent dependent on aid,” but it is being reduced, he warned.
The funding cuts put at risk the education, health, protection and survival of people in the camps, mainly ethnic Rohingya, who fled persecution in neighboring Myanmar, most of them after a systematic military operation in August 2017.
“It’s a very transitory environment, there are a lot of people coming and going,” observed the veteran British actor and UNICEF advocate.
Precarious and unstable
“We met a mother who just arrived and she still feels like she had to flee the conflict. She felt very unstable and insecure. So this is really a lifeline for these families in these communities and without their support, they have nothing.”
In June, UNICEF had to temporarily close most schools in Cox’s Bazar due to funding shortages; Almost 150,000 children were affected.
And although young people of all ages recently returned to classes after a fundraising campaign, the threat of a looming funding shortfall in early 2026 risks closing all schools again, which could affect more than 300,000 children.