The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has pronounced, on Wednesday, two historic decisions against Russia, establishing that Moscow has violated international law in the context of the war in Ukraine and that it is responsible for the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in 2014.
It is the first time since the onset of the large-scale invasion in 2022 that an international court officially establishes Russia’s guilt for human rights violations in Ukraine, writes AP.
At the same time, for the first time, an international court has concluded that Russia was directly involved in the downing of the MH17 aircraft, a tragedy in which 298 people lost their lives.
The families of the MH17 disaster victims consider the decision as an important step in their 11-year fight for justice.
The decisions come following lawsuits filed by Ukraine and the Netherlands and cover a wide range of accusations: from attacks on civilians and critical infrastructure, to the deportation of Ukrainian children and direct involvement in the events in eastern Ukraine in 2014.