[1/2]Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko attends the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, October 13, 2023. via Sputnik/Pavel Bednyakov/Pool, Reuters Note Editor – This image was provided by a third party. /file photo Obtaining license rights
AMSTERDAM, Nov. 16 (Reuters) – More than 2,400 Ukrainian children between the ages of 6 and 17 have been taken to 13 facilities across Belarus since Russia invaded Ukraine, Yale University said on Thursday. The results of the survey have been announced.
In May, Ukraine’s prosecutor general announced that it was investigating Belarus’ alleged involvement in the deportation of more than 19,000 identified children from Russian-occupied territories, including Russia, since the conflict began. did.
Some experts and organizations estimate that the total number is even higher.
The findings shared with Reuters by the Humanitarian Lab at the Yale School of Public Health, which is funded by the U.S. State Department, are the most extensive investigation to date into Belarus’ alleged role in a plot to relocate Ukrainian children to Russia. Thing.
Russia has so far rejected the war crimes charges, saying it was providing humanitarian aid to people who wanted to voluntarily flee Ukraine.
The media service of the Russian Committee for Children’s Rights, which oversees the migration of children from occupied Ukraine, and the Belarusian Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the investigation.
“These revelations implicating Belarus are part of a broader operation directed by Russia,” the US State Department said in a statement. “The United States will continue to hold accountable those involved in human rights violations related to Russia’s war against Ukraine.”
Among the key discoveries detailed in the 39-page report is that this method, which Yale University researchers say is currently in progress, has been used to improve This included children being transported from at least 17 cities.
More than 2,000 children identified by Yale University will be transferred to the Dubrava Children’s Center in the Minsk region of Belarus from September 2022 to May 2023, and 392 children will be transferred to 12 other facilities. announced that it had been done.
“Russia’s systematic efforts to identify, collect, transport, and reeducate Ukrainian children were facilitated by Belarus,” the report said.
“The Government of the Russian Federation and the Belarusian Administration are cooperating to coordinate and finance the movement of children from Russian-occupied Ukraine through Russia to Belarus.”
It added that the shipment to Belarus via Russia was “finally arranged” between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko.
The International Criminal Court in The Hague issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin in March. He accused him and Children’s Rights Commissioner Maria Rybova-Belova of war crimes for illegally expelling hundreds of children from Ukraine.
International humanitarian law prohibits taking children under the age of 18 across borders without the consent of their parents or guardians.
Ukraine’s war crimes prosecutor’s office said it was investigating the deportations as possible genocide.
The Genocide Convention identifies five acts, each of which can be a crime if committed with genocidal intent, such as the forcible removal of children from a group.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry and the Prosecutor General’s Office, which oversees war crimes investigations, did not respond to requests for comment.
According to a report by Yale University, President Lukashenko has approved the use of state agencies to transport children from Ukraine to Belarus and the funding of such transportation. Once in Belarus, the children reportedly undergo military training and re-education.
It is unclear how many of the children identified in the Yale study remain in Belarus.
Additional reporting by David Ljunggren.Editing: Mike Collett-White, Alexandra Hudson, Rosalba O’Brien
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