The mission was disbanded "due to the lack of conditions for sending a mission to the scene."
UN Secretary-General António Guterres dismissed a mission to investigate the murder of Ukrainian prisoners of war in a colony in the occupied Olenivka (Yelenovka), Donetsk region, which took place on July 29, 2022.
As UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric stated during a briefing on January 5, 2023, the mission was disbanded "due to the lack of conditions for sending a mission to the scene."
Currently, the Russian Federation continues to hold Ukrainian prisoners of war in the penal colony in the village of Olenivka in the Donetsk region.
According to him, the reason for disbanding the mission is the lack of necessary security and access guarantees.
“We had a political deal, but for such a complex and delicate and, frankly, dangerous mission in a war zone, we need clear guarantees of security and access from both sides. We did not feel that we received them and did not feel that there was an opportunity to receive such guarantees in the future,†Dujarric is quoted by Radio Liberty.
At the same time, the UN representative did not answer the question which of the parties did not provide the necessary guarantees. He also noted that the mission could be revived in the future.
- On the night of July 29, 2022, an explosion occurred on the territory of a former penal colony in the occupied village of Yelenovka, Donetsk region. As a result of the terrorist act, the building where the prisoners of war taken out of Azovstal were kept was destroyed. 53 deaths were reported.
- Later, the acting commander of Azov, Major Nikita Nadtochy, said that the Russian invaders could use RPO-A Shmel infantry flamethrowers to kill the Ukrainian military in Olenivka. Because of them, a person burns out in seconds, because they quickly burn out the air.
- On September 8, it became known that the UN would investigate the terrorist attack in Olenivka.
The Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly called on the International Committee of the Red Cross to send a humanitarian mission there. The OP emphasizes: if the ICRC does not fulfill its functions, the Ukrainian side will raise the issue of dissolving the organization.
The International Committee of the Red Cross says they are ready to send representatives to Olenivka, but they are not allowed.
