A court in a separatist region controlled by separatists in eastern Ukraine has sentenced to death two British citizens and a Moroccan, who were captured while fighting by the Ukrainian army against Russian forces, according to media reports .
Thursday’s Supreme Court verdict in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), a region controlled by Russian-backed rebels and not internationally recognized as independent, marks the first conviction of foreign fighters since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24th.
Britain’s Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner and Morocco’s Brahim Saadoun have been accused of violating four articles of the DRP’s legal code, including trying to “seize power” and “train to carry out terrorist activities,” the report said. Donetsk news agency affiliated with the separatists.
The court identified each of the groups as “mercenaries” and said their actions had “led to [the] killed and wounded civilians ”, as well as the destruction of infrastructure in the DPR, which is one of the two separatist regions in the eastern Donbass region of Ukraine, along with the Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR).
The Russian news agency TASS reported that the three men had pleaded guilty to all charges against them.
The three men will now face a firing squad, according to Russian state news agency RIA Novosti. His lawyer said they would appeal the decision. It is said that they will have up to a month to do so.
The designation of the separatists of the three captured fighters as “mercenaries” has had implications for the protections granted to them, placing them outside the scope of the Geneva Conventions on Prisoners of War.
The Geneva Conventions grant combatants immunity from prosecution for military action deemed lawful.
The UK government is “deeply concerned” by the verdicts
Relatives of Pinner and Aslin have argued that both are members of the Ukrainian army and not mercenaries.
The couple were captured by pro-Russian forces in Mariupol in mid-April, during a fierce struggle for control of the port city in southeastern Ukraine.
Saadoun was captured in March in Volnovakha, a small town between Mariupol and the regional capital of Donetsk.
A spokesman for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the UK government was “deeply concerned” about the death sentences and would work to try to free Pinner and Aslin.
“We have continuously said that prisoners of war should not be exploited for political purposes,” the spokesman told reporters.
“Under the Geneva Convention, prisoners of war are entitled to combatant immunity and should not be prosecuted for hostilities. Therefore, we will continue to work with the Ukrainian authorities to try to secure the release of any British nationals. that he was serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine and that he was being held as a prisoner of war. “
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss condemned the sentence on Twitter, calling it a “false sentence with absolutely no legitimacy”.
Truss is expected to discuss the situation by telephone with his Ukrainian counterpart on Friday. The United Kingdom has not announced any plans to speak with Russian officials.
I strongly condemn the sentencing of Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner by Russian officials in eastern Ukraine.
They are prisoners of war. This is a false judgment with absolutely no legitimacy.
My thoughts are with the families. We continue to do our best to support them.
– Liz Truss (@trussliz) June 9, 2022
Government Minister Robin Walker described the DRP’s supreme court as “an illegal court in a sham government” and said the UK would use “all diplomatic channels to argue that they are prisoners of war”. which should be treated accordingly “.
“Russia must take responsibility, its responsibilities under the Geneva Convention, for the treatment of prisoners of war,” he added.
There was no immediate reaction from Rabat regarding the charges against the Moroccan national.
The Russian military has argued that foreign mercenaries fighting alongside Ukraine are not troops and should wait to be tried if captured. Another British fighter captured by pro-Russian forces, Andrew Hill, is awaiting trial.