Appeal of Members of the International Platform “Civil Solidarity” to Members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe regarding the Russian Attack on Medical Facilities in Ukraine on July 8, 2024
The platform “Civil Solidarity” unites non-governmental organizations striving to improve human rights situations in Europe, Eurasia, and North America, serving as a conduit through which activists can form alliances, strengthen mutual support and solidarity, and expand their influence at national and international levels.
On July 8, 2024, a direct hit by a Russian strategic missile X-101 on the pediatric medical center “Okhmatdet” led to human casualties and extensive destruction. At least two people, including one doctor, were killed. The missile strike on the children’s hospital was not a result of Ukrainian air defense operations. This missile was not intercepted; its target was specifically the medical center, as confirmed by objective evidence. However, the strike on “Okhmatdet” was not the only attack on a medical institution during the massive missile assault on Ukraine. On the same day, debris from a rocket struck the “Adonis” medical center in Kyiv, resulting in the deaths of 7 people, including 5 doctors. Additionally, on July 8, Russians also struck a maternity hospital in the Dnipro district of Kyiv.
The strikes on civilian targets in Ukraine on July 8 resulted in the deaths of at least 33 people, with another 140 wounded. In Kyiv, 27 civilians lost their lives, and 82 others were injured.
Russian armed forces have previously used the destruction of medical facilities as a method of military aggression. In May 2019, Russian aviation bombed four hospitals in northwest Syria within a day, as documented by The New York Times.
All instances of Russian military crimes against patients of medical facilities have gone unpunished. Russia is a permanent member of the UN Security Council and blocks every opportunity to counter violations of international humanitarian law. The international security system during Russian aggression against Ukraine has demonstrated an inability to restrain the aggressor.
Equally important is the failure of the international humanitarian law system designed to protect civilian populations and alleviate suffering during wars. The Russian regime systematically and with impunity violates the Geneva Conventions and their protocols by destroying medical facilities and their patients. One reason for this is the inadequacy of international humanitarian law to adequately respond to such crimes. The Geneva Conventions are documents based solely on the goodwill of their participants; they are not precise in every formulation and do not account for modern informational and technical realities.
We, representatives of human rights organizations from the region of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), appeal to the members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) to initiate a discussion on improving the international humanitarian law system in light of the tragic consequences of Russian aggression against Ukraine. Among you are representatives of parliaments of countries that have been or are currently victims of Russian aggression and have experienced the inhumane methods of warfare by the Russian Federation. We urge you to discuss the issue of “The Necessity of Improving International Humanitarian Law” within the structures of PACE, with the participation of Ukrainian human rights activists and experts from other countries in the region, and then initiate the extremely important process of amending the norms regulating the rules of warfare, which is crucial for the entire world. Wars and the suffering they bring to people are a global problem. Currently, armed conflicts are ongoing in more than 20 countries.
Several organizations within the “Civil Solidarity” platform are already working on proposals to reform international humanitarian law and are ready to present their ideas to PACE deputies.
Signatures:
- Center for Civil Liberties, Ukraine
- Promo-LEX, Moldova
- Austausch e.V. – For a European Civil Society, Germany
- Public Association “Dignity”, Astana
- Human Rights Center “Viasna”, Belarus
- Human Rights Center of Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan
- Human Rights Movement “Bir Duino-Kyrgyzstan”, Kyrgyzstan
- Human Rights Centre ZMINA, Ukraine
- Swedish OSCE-network, Sweden
