Ukraine Crisis: Legal Experts Warn of “Serious and Imminent Risk of Genocide” as Russian Attack Continues

Legal experts conducted an independent investigation into Russia's war on Ukraine and warned of a "serious and imminent risk of genocide" that they claim was incited by Moscow in order to destroy the Ukrainian people.

The report, which was signed by more than 30 leading scholars and genocide experts, accused the Russian state of violating several articles of the United Nations Genocide Convention. It also warns of genocide in Ukraine, supporting accusations with a long list of evidence that includes examples of mass killings of civilians, forced deportations, and dehumanizing anti-Ukrainian rhetoric used by top Russian officials.

Russia's Acts of Genocide in Ukraine

New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy, a U.S.-based think tank, was the one that put together the report with the help of the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights which is based in Canada. It is set to be released on Friday with the authors sending copies to parliaments, governments, and international organizations worldwide.

Azeem Ibrahim of the New Lines Institute said that they have assembled top legal experts from around the world who examined all the evidence and came to the conclusion that the Russian federation bore the responsibility for breaches of the Genocide Convention in Ukraine. The report was put together thanks to Ibrahim visiting Ukraine in March to gather evidence, as per CNN.

He added that the report was based on a thorough and detailed examination of the extensive evidence available. Ibrahim argued that what has been so far was considered genocidal in nature, in terms of the language being used and the manner in which it is being executed.

The signatories of the UN Genocide Convention have a legal obligation to prevent genocide but the recent findings are urging the international community to act. Ibrahim said that there was no time left as there was a "very serious risk of genocide." He argued that every country signed onto the convention should do everything they can to put a stop to the tragic war.

Evidence of Atrocities

According to The Guardian, United States President Joe Biden labeled Russian atrocities in Ukraine as genocide back in April. Other governments have also followed suit, though the state department said that it was ultimately up to a court to determine.

Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor of the international criminal court, is leading an investigation of war crimes and has the authority to bring charges of genocide if he feels there is sufficient evidence.

One of the expert contributors to the report, Tanya Domi, said that they have never seen anything like what Russia was doing so early during a conflict. The adjunct professor at the Columbia University School of International and Public affairs added that the documentation of crimes in Ukraine outstrips anything that they have seen in the recent past.

The report adds that the purveyors of incitement propaganda are all highly influential political, religious, and State-run media figures, including President Vladimir Putin. It claims that there was mounting evidence that showed Russian soldiers internalized and were responding to the State propaganda campaign by echoing its content while committing atrocities, the Washington Post reported.